Shades of Grey
by The Great NeoDragon
Summary: The war between Nightmare and starwarriors had long been over, but with Kirby's increasing power the monsters are becomming uneasy. With the rekindling of the war eminent and Nightmare's alliance w/Dedede, can Meta-Knight train Kirby in time?
1. Chapter 1

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Shades of Grey - Chapter 1

Just outside of King Dedede's castle, Kirby and Tuff were playing their version of soccer. Tiff was sitting under the shade of a tree, peacefully engrossed in a book. The young boy and star warrior kicked and head-butt the ball to each other, oblivious to the eyes that followed their every move. Yet they had nothing to fear. The eyes that followed them belonged to their protector and friend, Meta-Knight. The war veteran could feel a vague sense of dread. The long and horrific war between the Nightmare battalion and the star warriors had ended in favor of the monsters. None of the star warriors had survived the Great War, or so the monsters and their leader, N.M.E., believed. However Kirby's growing strength had caught their attention, and Meta-Knight feared that the war might be rekindled before the young warrior was ready. Kirby could not yet sense the monsters' growing unease, as he had not yet developed that skill. The elder warrior on the other hand could feel their distress all too well, and so he took it upon himself to keep an eye on Kirby. Nothing could happen to the young star warrior, for he was the only hope. 

Meta-Knight closed his eyes. He could still remember the ghastly visage of his brethren as the monsters had outnumbered and out mastered them. He could still feel the lives of his comrades slip from his grasp, the final breaths of those he tried so hard to save. Valiantly Meta-Knight and the star warriors fought, but they were swept down in waves until he was the only one left. Upon the realization that he was the only one alive, the elder warrior had to flee. Every step that carried him further away from the ghastly battlefield was an almost physical blow to his conscience. Deserting the battlefield was an immense violation to the knightly code of honor that he so clung to. Yet he knew that if he stayed he would have only been throwing his own life away. Despite his wish to stay and fight the vile monsters to the death, he knew that the rational thing to do was to find other star warriors and regroup. What he didn't know at the time was that not only was he the only star warrior standing in that battlefield, but the last of his entire race.

Throughout the universe he searched, trying to find even a hint that he wasn't the only living star warrior, but his findings always came up short. However upon nearing Dreamland he could sense a higher concentration of monsters. Meta-Knight figured that if he could sense their presence so strongly there, other star warriors would be able to as well. Yet after two years of waiting Meta-Knight had almost given up all hope. Kirby's appearance had been a godsend, and Meta-Knight vowed to protect him at all costs.

What the old veteran couldn't understand was how could the Dreamlanders and the few regular soldiers that did survive fancy him such a grand warrior? If he was so great than he would have been able to save his comrades from the clutches of death. If he was so great than he would have been able to defeat the monsters on his own. If he was so great than he wouldn't need Kirby. Yet everyone seemed to overlook his failures and view him as a great warrior, a hero even. He shook his head to the thought. Kirby was to be the real hero, but Meta-Knight feared that he was too young and inexperienced to fulfill the enormous task his predecessor had placed on him. Training Kirby was an option, but Meta-Knight decided to refrain until it was completely necessary. He did not want to rob Kirby of his childhood, to deny him the ability to have fun and enjoy life. Yet now with the war brewing, Meta-Knight knew that he would soon have to start training the little creampuff.

A hand landed on the old warrior's shoulder, startling him out of his thoughts. He whirled around to see his two subordinates, Sword and Blade. Blade withdrew his hand upon the realization that he had startled his leader.

"Sorry sir," Blade said as he bowed his head.

"No apologies necessary," Meta-Knight waved his hand. "What's wrong?"

"Sir, how about letting us watch Kirby for awhile?" Sword offered, his voice tinged with concern.

Meta-Knight sighed, exhaustion settling in. "Alright. I'm going back to the castle. If anything happens come and get me immediately."

"Yes sir!" Sword and Blade said with a simultaneous salute.

Meta-Knight didn't really want nor intended to let Blade and Sword watch the children initially. It wasn't that he didn't trust his soldiers, for many times have they proved their bravery and loyalty. His soldiers were valiant, but they were also young, sometimes reckless and didn't yet have enough experience on the battlefield. However all of the preparations and worrying had proven taxing, and had he stayed much longer he would not have been much help if something did happen.

As Meta-Knight slowly treaded down the distant hallway, he heard two voices chattering enthusiastically from the throne room. He easily distinguished Dedede's loud voice and figured that the lower tone belonged to Escargoon. If they had something to feel eager about it certainly couldn't be any good. While Meta-Knight was King Dedede's captain of the guards, he felt no loyalty to the vain and spiteful dictator and knew all about his association with Nightmare.

Despite his growing wariness he decided to eavesdrop on the two and find out just what they were up to. He edged up closer to the door and blended into the shadows…

King Dedede and Escargoon were talking to the Nightmare Incorporate Executive.

"It's only a matter of time until the old war's going to restart," the executive explained. "Even the monsters here can feel Kirby's increasing strength."

"I toldja that Kirby is a menace!" Dedede bellowed. "That's the whole reason I bought monsters from ya in the first place! But you gave me crappy and weak monsters and now look what's happening!"

Meta-Knight stood silently by the door, cloaked in shadows.

The executive raised his hands. "Don't worry Triple De. The big bosses are even considering having an alliance with you."

"An alliance?" Dedede rubbed his pudgy hands together. "Tell me more."

"Well…due to your extreme wealth and the fact that you have the last star warriors living so close makes you a candidate for consideration. If you do join with us then we would send you monsters for free, as well as ensure your safety during the war," the Executive scratched his chin. "Yet, we're not so sure. We can't just let anyone ally with us."

"Really now? I'll tell ya what'll make me your prime candidate! Escargoon, get the syringe!" Dedede ordered. The snail grumbled incoherently as he retrieved a large syringe with an orange liquid inside. "This here, is my patented Behemoth Serum!" He took the vial from Escargoon and held it up to the monitor. "It turns ordinary creatures into monsters! I created it a short while back but I haven't yet been able to test it on anything but small worms due to Kirby's constant interference!"

Meta-Knight scowled beneath his mask upon seeing the vial. He thought it was completely destroyed when Dynablade smashed the first syringe, but apparently Dedede either made more of it or had some in storage.

The executive looked at the vial with unrepressed enthusiasm. "That would surely help us and if it does work you'll be accepted as an ally for certain. But why test it on creatures when you could test it on an actual star warrior? Perhaps turn one of them into a monster?"

"I can't test it on Kirby," King Dedede growled. "If he was that easy to catch I woulda done it by now!"

"I didn't say anything about testing Kirby…" the executive smiled sardonically as he raised one hand and pointed straight at Meta-Knight. "You have a star warrior right there to test it on."

King Dedede and Escargoon whirled around, their scornful eyes landing on the captain of the guards. Meta-Knight had blended in perfectly with the shadows, how could he have been spotted so easily?! Yet now wasn't the time to question, he was seen and he had to do something about it. He stepped out of the shadows.

"Lord Dedede," Meta-Knight began. "If you join Nightmare you will be making a horrific mistake. What makes you think that they will not betray you? That when they destroy everything that you will be spared? They will use you, majesty, and as soon as they're done they'll throw you away!" But his words fell on deaf ears.

"Get em'!" Dedede roared. The soldiers stormed the room, eager to fight even their own superior to advance themselves in the eyes of their king. Meta-Knight drew his sword threateningly and the soldiers all backed off for the moment. Even they knew of Meta-Knight's legacy and did not wish to test his skill first-hand. Despite his aggressive stance, the old soldier knew that he would not be able to defeat so many soldiers with his increasing weariness. Nevertheless he could also not let himself fall, for if he did there would be no one to guide and protect Kirby. Suddenly all at once the soldiers attacked him, but he fought back with a keen and disciplined hand. The soldiers' swordsmanship skills were sub-par and Meta-Knight's abilities far outweighed even the eldest and most disciplined of Dedede's warriors. Even so his fatigue was beginning to outweigh skill and Meta-Knight knew he could not last. One young soldier locked swords with him, and Meta-Knight pushed him back heavily. He whirled around and leapt over two charging soldiers. Landing behind them, he turned to run out the door and found himself face-to-face with a large wolf-like monster. The creature's eyes glowed brightly, and Meta-Knight recognized the maroon behemoth on sight.

"Wolfwrath?!" Suddenly Meta-Knight felt something sharp stick into the back of his shoulder. He immediately spun around, swinging his sword in an arc. The blade caught Escargoon in the chest and knocked the syringe out of his stubby hand. With a cry the snail staggered back.

"You…you…you cut me!" Escargoon roared, clutching his chest with his other hand. Meta-Knight kicked away another approaching soldier and retreated out of the room as fast as his feet could carry him. 

By the time he reached his quarters he was way ahead of Dedede's soldiers. He quickly ran into the room he and his two subordinates shared and slammed the door shut. Afterwards he pressed his back against it and slid down to a sitting position. Meta-Knight braced himself expecting a barrage of blows to the door, but none ever came. The soldiers had given up their chase, for reasons he wasn't sure. He touched his shoulder where he had been stabbed, it had already healed. That was one of the powers of a star warrior; minor injuries are quickly rejuvenated. Yet that left him with a chilling question. How much of that serum did Escargoon inject? The needle had penetrated only seconds, how much was that snail able to inject in that short a time? How much would it take to do the job? What if Dedede's soldiers decided to attack his subordinates instead? What was that monster? Could it really have been Wolfwrath?! So many questions plagued the old warriors mind. He had to warn Kirby, the children, Sword and Blade! They all could be in danger! But…fatigue had finally won out over his senses, he couldn't even draw the strength to stand and everything slowly faded to black...

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Author's Notes: When I first heard that there was going to be a Kirby anime released here on Fox, I was very excited. The entire time I hoped that Meta-Knight was going to be in it, for he had always been my favorite character throughout the Kirby games. (I have a tendency to like masked and mysterious villains) Yet when I started watching it, I was disappointed. Half of the bad guys in the games were good in the show, from Lololo and Lalala to Meta-Knight. I was especially disappointed with Meta-Knight because I found him out of character, he never did anything and yet seemed to know everything, and finally because his voice makes him sound like a vampire. However I kept watching it, hoping for it to get better. Upon watching it for a few weeks many of the characters grew on me. Although Meta-Knight is different in the show than he was in the game he was still my favored. I found Lololo and Lalala cute, and I think Tiff's cool too. Yet I still hoped to find an actual cool episode. The came last Saturday. I thought the episode with Wolfwrath was awesome! It portrayed Meta-Knight as cool and powerful as well as showed that he was not invincible, and Wolfwrath is now my favorite monster from the show. Since then I've made a challenge to myself to write a serious Kirby fanfic and see if I can actually keep in canon to the show, in character and interesting. Of course Meta-Knight would have to be the star of my fic since he's my favorite =D How is it so far? Please read and review. Thank you very much for taking the time to read my story.


	2. Chapter 2

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Shades of Grey - Chapter 2

Meta-Knight stood before his smaller brethren. The sun was beginning to set, and highlighted the entire terrain in an orangish glow.

"Kirby, it is time that I train you," the elder star warrior stated. He expected a look of disappointment but instead what he received was a look of understanding. Without any further ado Meta-Knight threw a sword to Kirby. "I want you to have a friendly duel with me, so I know exactly where your skill level stands."

Kirby nodded obediently and raised the sword. It was obvious that he was having slight trouble handling the large weapon; nevertheless it did not deter his resolve. The smaller warrior lunged at his elder, swinging his sword in an arc. Meta-Knight easily deflected it and used his strength to push Kirby back. The small creampuff staggered back, almost falling. At the last minute he regained his composure and once again lunged at the war veteran. Meta-Knight and Kirby locked swords. The old soldier was first to break the lock, swinging the sword hard. Kirby flattened himself to avoid the blow and retaliated with a sword jab. Meta-Knight strafed aside and charged forward, ramming the smaller soldier to the ground.

Looking down on his temporarily stunned adversary, Meta-Knight felt a wave of rage. He couldn't decipher the origin to his newfound anger, but suddenly he felt himself raise his sword, the blade pointed down towards Kirby. The young star warrior looked up at his former protector and friend with fear. It was a look rarely seen in the naïve little creampuff and it brought the elder soldier a sense of dread and disgust. His mind screamed for him to stop, but his limbs did not obey. Instead, despite his mental commands to stop he stabbed the sword downwards…

"What have I done?!" Meta-Knight cried. He knelt down by Kirby's side and placed his hands on the wound in an attempt to stop the bleeding. But the damage had been done, and Kirby's wound was fatal. "What have I done?!!!"

"Sir Meta-Knight!"

Suddenly, the world began to spin around him. He felt nauseated and disorientated. When the world finally reshaped itself, the war veteran discovered that he was lying down on a couch with his cape over him like a blanket. A very concerned Blade and Sword stood over him. Was everything that happened just a dream? If so, was the whole fight with Dedede and the injection just a dream as well? He had to know.

"Kirby!" Meta-Knight cried, trying to push himself up to a sitting position.

"Kirby's fine," Sword stated as he and Blade gently pushed their leader back down.

"Yeah, it's you we're worried about," Blade said.

"Why?" the old veteran asked.

The two young soldiers looked at each other for a moment. "We came back about an hour ago." Blade began.

"When we arrived you were lying down, unconscious," Sword continued.

"When we tried to wake you up, you started having a seizure!" Blade exclaimed.

"A seizure?" Meta-Knight was thoroughly confused by that statement. He wasn't epileptic; he'd never had a seizure in his life.

Sword nodded, "Scared us half to death you did!"

"We were going to go get a doctor but you stopped, and that's when you woke up," Blade finished.

Meta-Knight shook his head to clear his thoughts. Maybe…the seizure was his body's way of fighting the affects of that Behemoth Serum that Escargoon ejected into him. The serum had never been tested on a star warrior and the old soldier figured that Escargoon didn't have enough time to eject that much of it. Star warriors were known to have quick healing abilities, maybe that was his body's way of purging the vile substance. The thought relieved him, but the knowledge of the oncoming war still plagued him. What was it that the N.M.E. Executive said? The war was soon going to start up again? That didn't give him much time. He had to train Kirby as soon as possible.

"Are you alright sir?" Sword asked gently. Meta-Knight turned to regard his subordinates. He had to admit, he was deeply touched by their obvious concern. It was nice to have soldiers as loyal and trustworthy as they were.

"Don't worry," Meta-Knight replied. "I'm fine now. Thank you for your concern." Sword and Blade appeared unsatisfied with their leader's response, as worry continued to etch their features. "Tomorrow we must find Kirby."

"The war's rekindling, isn't it?" Blade asked. Meta-Knight nodded.

"Yes, and tomorrow I will begin the training," the old soldier announced…

Tiff, Kirby and Tuff were sitting by the lake, fishing. Lololo and Lalala were floating peacefully above the lake, looking for fish. From his place behind the trees Meta-Knight watched their peaceful behavior, feeling a tinge of guilt that he was going to have to place such weight on the soldiers of such a young warrior.

"I don't see any fish," Lololo said. "Do you?"

"No," Lalala answered back.

"That would explain why we haven't caught any…" Tuff mumbled.

With a soft sigh, Meta-Knight stepped out from his place by the trees and walked over to the children. Tiff was the first to notice him. "Hi Meta-Knight!"

The old soldier nodded silently to the young girl, then looked straight at Kirby. The little creampuff turned to look back at him, placing the fishing rod gently on the ground. He knew, despite his underdeveloped sixth sense he could feel the tension in the air. "Kirby, forgive me. I wanted to spare you the burden of war as long as possible, but I fear that we're running out of time." The young star warrior slowly climbed onto his feet and looked directly into Meta-Knight's eyes. "I promise that I will protect you as long as I live, but if something were to happen to me there would be no one left to stop them. That's why I must train you." Kirby nodded in understanding, he still didn't have the ability to talk. "We will begin training today, alright?" Kirby replied with another nod.

"Wait!" Tuff suddenly cried, receiving a strange look from both star warriors, "Train me too, Meta-Knight!"

"Tuff…"

"No, I'm serious!" Tuff said sternly. "I may not be a star warrior, but I can't just stand back and do nothing while you and Kirby fight this horrific war!"

"Train us too, Meta-Knight!" Lololo and Lalala said simultaneously.

Meta-Knight shook his head, "You are all too young…"

"This involves us, too," Tiff replied sternly. She stood and crossed her arms. "No matter what happens we're all involved in this. Even if we don't fight, the outcome of this war will affect our very lives. At least we can feel that we have some control over our destiny."

The old knight grew quiet, considering the young girl's wise statement. "You're right, Tiff. But I warn you now, I can't go easy on you. In order to prepare you for the war I must be just as harsh to you as I will be to Kirby."

"We understand and accept. Don't we, guys?" Tuff looked to his friends and sister for their answers. Tiff nodded in agreement.

"Count us in!" Lololo and Lalala cheered.

"Alright then," Meta-Knight looked down at the lake, "Tuff, I notice that you have problems swimming. The enemy may use that to their advantage if they were to find out." He picked up a large rock from the ground and carved an arrow into it with his sword. "Memorize this symbol," the elder soldier ordered as he showed Tuff the rock. Once he was sure Tuff memorized it, he hurled the rock with all of his strength. It landed several yards away into the water. "I want you to retrieve that rock. Make sure it's the right one." Tuff nodded solemnly. He obviously disliked the task to which he was assigned, but without hesitation or complaint he dove into the water to search for the rock.

Lololo and Lalala watched silently as Meta-Knight turned to face them. "Your flying ability serves you well, but what if that was ever temporarily or permanently taken away? You need to be prepared for anything, so I would like you to run as many laps as you can around the lake. Count how many you can run so I can figure out your physical status." The little creampuffs nodded obediently as they landed softly on the ground and began their first lap around the lake.

"What do you want me to do, Meta-Knight?" Tiff asked.

Meta-Knight stood silently in thought. "Tiff, I noticed that you're much more intellectually advanced than most children, especially in regards to science." The girl nodded. "Would you rather I train you more in that field, or train you to fight?"

"What would I be a better help with?" Tiff asked. "I don't like to fight, but if I have to I will."

"Actually you may be a better help to us scientifically. Scientists were a great help during the war, they were able to counteract the effects of poison as well as find ways for us to enhance our abilities." Meta-Knight explained.

Tiff nodded in understanding. "Then that's what I want to do."

"Alright then, I want you to go to the library and find as many books as you can on environmental biology and chemistry. If you have any questions, the mayor is surprisingly scientifically inclined and should be able to help you." The war veteran explained. Tiff nodded again, then turned around and ran off to the Library. Finally, Meta-Knight turned to regard Kirby. The smaller warrior was looking up at his elder, a serious and solemn look on his young face. "As for you, let's have a friendly duel so that I can see your skills first hand."

Kirby nodded obediently. Meta-Knight pulled out a smaller sword that he had brought with him and tossed it to the younger star warrior. The little pink creampuff caught the sword, almost falling from its weight. Yet his initial difficult did nothing to deter his resolve and eventually he held the sword almost skillfully. Suddenly, Meta-Knight had a strange feeling of déjà vu, as if his intuition was trying to warn him of something. However, before he could further examine his sudden feeling of anxiety Kirby lunged at him. The elder soldier blocked the blow with ease and used his strength advantage to push Kirby forward. The young star warrior staggered back, but regained his balance. Everything seemed to be going all right, but Meta-Knight couldn't dispel that feeling of dread that threatened to overwhelm him. Suddenly, realization hit him like a physical blow - _the dream!_

Kirby lunged at him once again, and Meta-Knight deflected the blow and retaliated with one of his own. Kirby flattened himself to avoid the blow and jumped back. Was the dream a premonition? Could the seizure have been his body's failed attempt to squelch the effects of the serum? Maybe the serum was having a delayed effect on him. If that was true, if the dream was true…

Meta-Knight's train of thought was broken when he felt a sharp blow to his temple. He fell back, dropping his sword in the process. Kirby gasped and ran to his side, obviously surprised that his elder had failed to dodge his assault. The old knight was proud initially that Kirby had such strength so early in his young life. Suddenly, his feelings of satisfaction were replaced by overwhelming rage. A rage so intense that he saw everything in a haze of red. The young star warrior looked down at Meta-Knight with uncontained concern, oblivious to his elder's sudden and drastic change of emotions. It was then that the veteran knew, and the truth was almost too much to bare. That seizure had been his body's attempt to fight the virus, and that his body had failed.

He had to get away!

Meta-Knight abruptly sprang onto his feet and pushed Kirby aside. Ignoring the confused and frightened visage of his young disciple, the elder warrior ran away as fast as his feet could carry him. With every step he felt more nauseated, more disorientated. Eventually he felt too sick to continue and had to stop. He didn't know where he was or where had was trying to go, all he cared about was getting away from Kirby. If anything were to happen to the young star warrior everything would be lost.

Suddenly his feelings of anxiety and nausea passed, leaving him drained and enervated. As Meta-Knight sat down to regain his composure, he pondered what action he should take. The serum was slowly taking effect, that much was certain. Yet, what could he do about it? As far as he was aware there was no cure, and if he spent the time to look for one he would lose vital time to train Kirby. Even so, he was a danger to everyone, especially Kirby. Could he take that risk? His life was expendable, but Kirby's was not. On the other hand, there was no one else who could train Kirby in his place. Finally, after long consideration Meta-Knight figured out what course of action he had to take. He was going to train Kirby, and will continue to train him until he completely loses himself to the Behemoth Serum. Hopefully, by the time that comes Kirby would be able to defeat and destroy him. But the final chilling question in his mind remained: How long was he going to be able to last?

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Author's Notes: Finally finished chapter 2! Yay! ::Does happy dance:: I will post the third chapter as soon as possible, but due to time constraints and college essays/finals it may take me longer than anticipated. I hope you like the story so far!!


	3. Chapter 3

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Shades of Grey - Chapter 3

Slowly Meta-Knight treaded back to the lake. Kirby was standing in the same place Meta-Knight had left him, a concerned and confused look on his young face. As the elder knight approached him, Kirby jumped up and ran to him.

"Boy-oh?" Kirby asked with the small vocabulary he currently possessed.

The old knight's eyes glowed gently as he tenderly rubbed Kirby's head. "Sorry if I scared you. Don't worry about it, ok?" His words did nothing to ease the mind of his youthful brethren. "Lets forget about the duel. How about you practice your inhale?" Kirby smiled brightly and nodded. "Alright then. Here," Meta-Knight picked up a small rock and placed in among other, heavier rocks. "I want you to inhale this rock, and this rock only. This will force you to control the strength of the vacuum." Kirby stared at him blankly for a moment, then turned to face the group of rocks. Concentrating on the single rock in the middle, Kirby began to inhale.

Meta-Knight stood behind the young star warrior yet could still feel the pull of the suction. Lololo and Lalala were on their third lap around the lake, but exhaustion threatened to overwhelm them. They jogged up to Meta-Knight, then collapsed onto the ground.

"Three…laps…" Lololo wheezed. "I counted…."

Meta-Knight nodded. "Very good. You can go home and rest now. Meet me here tomorrow morning and we will continue the training." The twin creampuffs climbed onto their feet, happy with their leader's praise. Waving a quick goodbye to Kirby they took to the skies, for once truly appreciating the ability that for so long they had taken for granted. Upon their departure, the old war veteran turned to monitor Kirby's progress. He did succeed to swallow the rock…as well as all of the other rocks around them. 

The little pink creampuff turned to look at Meta-Knight, his cheeks flushed with embarrassment of his dismal performance.

"That's alright…" Meta-Knight said softly. "We'll try again tomorrow-"

"Finally!" Tuff cried as he bursted from the lake, a rock in his hand. "I got it! I got it! Look, Meta-Knight!" He showed the rock to the old soldier, who nodded with approval.

"So you did. Excellent, Tuff," The young boy beamed with pride. Meta-Knight looked at both of them. The sun was beginning to set behind them. "It's getting late. Training's over for today. Meet me here tomorrow morning and we will continue. You both did a good job."

"Aw…shucks," Tuff laughed as he raised one hand behind his head. Kirby nodded, eager for a chance to redeem himself…

In the room Meta-Knight and his soldiers shared, Sword paced endlessly around the room. Blade stood, leaning back against the wall.

"Blade, I'm worried about Meta-Knight. Star warriors just don't have seizures for no reason!" Sword shook his head. "Heck, he's never even been sick!"

"He dismissed it as if it was nothing," Blade crossed his arms. "He's keeping something from us."

"He may not think it's our business, but damn it, it is!" Sword growled. "But what can we do? We don't even know what's wrong!"

Suddenly, the object of their concern trudged in through the door wearily. Both subordinates turned to look at him. Meta-Knight nodded in greeting.

"Lord Meta-Knight…" Sword began, his voice tight. Their leader looked to him, then to Blade. "I know you're keeping something from us. Please tell us what it is."

Meta-Knight sighed. Originally, he didn't think the serum was going to work, therefore there was no reason to tell them and cause them unnecessary worry. Yet, now that the serum apparently was going to work…it would be best to warn his soldiers and spare them the surprise.

"Remember the serum that King Dedede tried to use on Dynablade's chick?" the two soldiers looked at each other, then nodded. "Well… I discovered while eavesdropping that Dedede is striking an alliance with Nightmare for the war."

The two lieutenants gasped. "I didn't even think the King would stoop so low…" Sword muttered.

"…but I was found out… and while escaping Escargoon stabbed me with the syringe." Meta-Knight finished.

"What?! Why didn't you tell us before!" Blade cried.

The old soldier shook his head, "I didn't think it was going to work, barely any of it was actually injected."

"Aren't you going to look for a cure?" Sword asked.

Meta-Knight shook his head, "I don't think even King Dedede would be stupid enough to make a cure. It would defeat the purpose."

"You can't just give up!" Blade shook his head vigorously, "That's not like you! Maybe we could _make_ Dedede create a cure! We could…find someone to make a cure! Something!"

"I don't have time. War is on the horizon, and Kirby must be ready-" Meta-Knight began.

"Then let us look for the cure!" Sword suggested.

"Yeah! We'll…convince Escargoon to help us," Blade unsheathed his sword. "We can be a bit persuasive when the situation calls for it."

"It's dangerous… to your reputation as well as your physical well-being…" Meta-Knight stated, concern softening his voice. It touched him that his soldiers were so willing to risk themselves for him.

"If we were worried about danger we wouldn't hang out with you at all!" Sword laughed. "You just worry 'bout training Kirby, we'll find you that cure!"

Meta-Knight's eyes glowed softly, "Thank you…"

The full moon showed brightly in the skies, as if the clouds had parted just so the moon could shine down and illuminate Dreamland. Meta-Knight laid in his cot, looking out the window at the glowing orb. It was very late and he was fatigued yet sleep avoided him. His mind was plagued with worry. When was the Behemoth Serum finally going to take over? He vowed to fight the affects as long as he could, but was it really that simple? The thought of hurting Kirby chilled him, tormented him. He didn't want to force Kirby to destroy him, didn't want to abandon him. Meta-Knight knew through first-hand experience how hard it is to harm a friend, even if you know it's for the best. Kirby already had so much weight on his small shoulders; it wasn't fair to put even more weight. Yet in reality there was nothing he could do. That's what angered him more than anything, he knew what was happening and yet could not change the future to which he was compelled. Ultimately, knowing that the peaceful oblivion that sleep provided was not going to be granted to him, he pulled himself out of his cot. Meta-Knight picked up his mask from the bedside table and slipped it on, lightly stepping around the cots of his two subordinates so as not to wake them. Despite the few years they had followed him, neither they nor any other currently living being has seen his face. However, had Blade or Sword been curious enough they probably could have found out being that they and he shared the same room. It pleased the old knight greatly that his two disciples regarded him so highly that they disregarded their own curiosity and respected his privacy. Meta-Knight also knew not what they looked like under their respective helmets, but never asked them. They respected his privacy and he respected theirs'.

Meta-Knight slowly walked out of the castle and to the lake that he had been previously training Kirby and the children. It was a beautiful lake under normal circumstances, but beneath the moonlight it was almost break taking. The old soldier stood silently to regard the radiating scenery before him, when suddenly he noticed a small creature huddling right by the water. One hand on his sword, Meta-Knight slowly approached the figure. Upon stepping on a small twig, the creature turned to look at him with alarm.

"Kirby?" Meta-Knight withdrew his hand from the hilt. "What are you doing out here?" The little creampuff got up and ran over to Meta-Knight, mewling lightly. "What's wrong? What happened?" Kirby looked up at him with misty eyes and tugged on his cape. "Was it a bad dream?" Kirby answered with a nod. Meta-Knight sighed and gently rubbed the top of the young soldier's head. "Bad dreams are just that, they cannot harm you. You should go back to sleep, we have a lot of work to do tomorrow."

Kirby sniffled, tugging on Meta-Knight's cape. This left the war veteran in an awkward position. He couldn't really afford to let Kirby become attached to him… yet he didn't want to be unnecessarily cruel to him, either. As an alternative he could be harsh to Kirby, thereby sparing the young creampuff from the pain of the inevitable. Yet Meta-Knight wondered if detachment would cause him even more pain. With the entire burden forced upon him at such a young age, Meta-Knight felt at the very least he could provide support. At least he could be a father figure, a teacher, a friend…

"Do you want to sleep with me?" Meta-Knight asked tenderly. Kirby nodded. "Alright, c'mon." The old soldier looked up to find a tree with branches that could hold their combined weight. It wasn't overly difficult, despite Kirby's appetite and Meta-Knight's strength both were by nature low density. Once he found branches sturdy enough, he climbed up the tree. Kirby puffed up and floated onto the tree branch as Meta-Knight situated himself. The little pink creampuff landed in front of his elder, who sat down and unclasped his cape. The young star warrior sat down and nuzzled against the front of his mentor's mask. In return, Meta-Knight wrapped his cape tenderly around the little creature. Almost immediately Kirby was fast asleep. "Good, little one. Rest up. We have a long and harsh road ahead of us…"

Escargoon was in one of the guestrooms, rearranging the furniture and hiding all valuables due to the arrival of the King's soon to be "guests." For the alliance, Dedede promised to give Nightmare the serum and allow the monsters to reside at the castle in return for Kirby's destruction and protection during the war. The snail smiled mischievously as he recalled his successful attack on Meta-Knight. He was only capable of injecting a small amount of the serum, but that was all that was needed. The serum was at a high concentration and even a drop could draw out the dark side of even the most timid of creatures.

Escargoon was humming softly as he situated another chair. As he turned to leave the room he found himself face-to-blade with one of Meta-Knight's subordinates.

"Wh-what do you want?!" Escargoon snapped as he jumped back.

"You know what we're here for," Sword growled.

"Ah yes, so the serum must be working, I see," Escargoon nodded proudly. Sword jabbed the snail hard, almost breaking skin. Dedede's right-hand snail yelped in pain.

"We want the cure," Blade threatened. He closed the door and placed his back firmly against it.

"The King will wonder where I am!" Escargoon warned.

"Eventually, but you really won't live long enough to care if you don't obey us," Sword said nonchalant.

"I never made a cure," Escargoon said stubbornly as he crossed his arms.

"So you mean if I got some of that serum and injected you with it, you won't have anything to counteract it?" Blade asked. Suddenly, he pulled out a small vial and a syringe.

"Where'd you get that?!" Escargoon asked.

"We have our ways… now where's the cure? Or you'll suffer the same fate you've so unfairly bestowed upon Meta-Knight…" Sword warned.

"Alright alright… I don't have an actual cure, but I do have a formula. I'll make some immediately. Just don't stick me with that thing…" Escargoon waved his hands. Blade stepped away from the door and allowed the snail passage.

"We're going to follow you, just to make sure you keep your word. Oh, and I would make sure that cure is the right one, because we're testing it on you, first!" Sword forewarned. The snail replied with grumbling as he walked out of the room and towards the lab. Once the two soldiers were out of Escargoon's hearing range, Blade grinned under his helmet.

"Gotta love the magic of food coloring…" Blade commented as he took a sip of water from the vial…

The next morning, all of the children except for Tiff were at the lake as ordered. The young girl instead was at the mayor's office, studying biochemistry. Meta-Knight stood before the ones who arrived. "You all did well yesterday, but today is a new day. I think it would be best if you all knew of each other's strengths and weaknesses. So I want you all to have a friendly competition. I will pair you up in groups. Kirby and Lololo, you two will take on Tuff and Lalala." Meta-Knight held up a large green ball. "I want to see who can reach this ball first, and get it back to me. Use any method available, as long as you don't do any serious harm to your opponent. By the way, not only does the ball have to get to me, but you and your partner. Now go!" The old soldier hurled the ball into the water, the children chasing after it. As he watched their fevered attempts to retrieve the ball, a wave of nausea passed over him.

No! Not now! 

He wasn't done training Kirby yet!

_Kirby wasn't ready yet!_

The earth began to spin around him, everything a haze of red.

Was the Behemoth Serum taking affect?

Was he going to turn into a monster?

Was he going to die?

Suddenly, Tuff tried to through the ball away from Kirby and Lololo and almost nailed Meta-Knight with it. When Kirby and Lololo turned to go after the ball, they noticed their mentor's sudden distress. The elder knight was leaning forward, one hand against a tree, the other on his temple. 

"Meta-Knight?" Lololo floated out of the water and landed by his side. Within moments the children were all around him.

"Are you ok?" Lalala asked. Meta-Knight responded with an uncharacteristic growl. "What's wrong?" She reached forward to touch him when he abruptly slapped her hands away.

"G…get away!" Meta-Knight roared. "Don't come near!" This baffled the children, and they all looked to each other for advice on the situation. Yet all they met with were more frightened and baffled stares. Suddenly, their mentor growled with pain and he fell. Yet despite the agony he was able to catch himself.

Kirby mewled, both confused and terrified by the sudden malady of his trainer. The small sound generated a startling response. With a final cry violet bat-like wings bursted from his back. Horrified, the young disciples jumped back. Yet nothing sent a chill of cold deeper then Meta-Knight's eyes. Soulless, orbs crimson, his eyes burned holes into their soul as he rose from the ground and drew his sword…

Author's Notes: I re-wrote chapter 3, and I am now much more pleased with it. I decided to give Sword and Blade a much more vital role than I had originally intended. Also I think the added scenes helps to slow the story down and give it a better flow. What do you think? Thank you so much for your input! I am currently working with the fourth chapter, and will post it as soon as I think it's ready.


	4. Chapter 4

Shades of Grey - Chapter 4

Escargoon stood before his small lab, working on the cure. Behind him stood Meta-Knight's loyal subordinates, Sword and Blade. As the two watched the snail's labor, Sword slowly scooted closer to his friend.

"It may be a good idea to actually find some of the real serum," Sword whispered, making sure he was beyond the stooge's range of hearing. "Just incase he does try to pull anything, I don't feel safe using the antidote on Meta-Knight until we can test it on something first."

Blade nodded in agreement, "I'll go and find some. Be careful, ok? He's a sneaky one."

"Let 'em try something!" Sword grinned under his helmet. He rested his hand on the hilt. "That'll give me yet another reason to gut em'."

Blade chuckled softly, then turned around and ran out the door. Upon hearing the door shut Escargoon turned his head and looked over his shoulder at Sword. "Where's he going?"

"You need not concern yourself 'bout him," Sword said threateningly, "I'd suggest you get back to work…"

"Meta-Knight!" Tuff cried. "What's wrong with you?!" Lololo and Lalala cowered behind him, fear overtaking them. Kirby stood slightly off to the side, confusion and dismay evident in his young face. Tuff's cries received no response. Slowly Meta-Knight's eyes flashed a bright crimson and his wings spread. The children backed away.

"We… w-we need to tell someone!" Lalala whimpered. Tuff turned to regard the duo.

"You two go find Sword and Blade. Tell them what happened! Maybe they'll know what to do…" The twins answered with a nod, before jumping into the air and floating in the direction of King Dedede's castle. The sudden action caught the knight's attention, and he turned as if he meant to chase them. "No!! Meta-Knight-" Crimson eyes met his, and Tuff's words caught in his throat. His sword was enveloped in an unholy luminous glow, most likely due to a spectral power granted to him by his new form. The glow flickered and brightened in accordance to the old soldier's eyes, as if symbolizing the end of Meta-Knight's former existence in favor of his newer necromantic alternative.

Suddenly, like a bolt of lightning Meta-Knight dashed forward. Tuff couldn't move, couldn't breathe. Paralysis gripped him without any intentions of letting go. Meta-Knight swung the blade with such strength it looked as though he cut the air itself. As the edge of Meta-Knight's sword neared the petrified Tuff, a sudden force deflected the blow. The old soldier staggered back, almost dropping the sword and looked for the source of the impact. There, through the crimson haze of Meta-Knight's vision stood Kirby. The little star warrior held a large tree branch, his eyes narrowed with resolve.

Meta-Knight prepared to attack, but his conscience stilled his hand. His crimson eyes flickered to emerald, an outward expression of the turmoil that raged inside.

_Not Kirby…_

I won't hurt Kirby…

Meta-Knight raised his sword, his wings outstretched and prepared for flight. Kirby watched him, yet the old soldier could see no malice in the eyes of his disciple. All he found was concern. Meta-Knight felt the tug of rage, the wanting to destroy the enemy of Nightmare that stood before him. Yet despite this urge he repressed it with whatever former consciousness he still possessed.

_I will not hurt Kirby._

Kirby is our last hope.

Meta-Knight's wings flapped slowly, as if testing their strength and stability. Paralysis continued to hold Tuff in its grasp, all he could do was watch the exchange with unrepressed horror. The old soldier's eyes darkened to red.

__

Kirby must defeat me.

But he is not yet ready.

Kirby mewled softly, steadying himself. Meta-Knight was his teacher, protector, father figure, friend. The little star warrior had no intentions of harming him, but couldn't stand by and watch Tuff get hurt.

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My life is expendable.

Kirby's is not.

Kirby was a strong and brave warrior, yet Meta-Knight knew how this potential exchange could end. He wanted to stop, to spare Kirby the misery of having to fight and destroy him. He wanted to nullify the possibility that he himself could destroy Kirby. The thought of harming Kirby brought a pang of anguish to the old soldier, and he fought desperately to regain control.

__

He wasn't finished with his training.

He won't be able to defeat me.

I failed.

Abruptly Meta-Knight's eyes flashed and he dashed forward, sword ready to strike. Kirby held his position temporarily, but as his adversary neared he lost his resolve. With a whimper Kirby held the branch before him as protection and tightly closed his eyes.

__

No!

With the last ounce of strength that resided in the Meta-Knight's consciousness, he willed his body to flap it's newly developed wings. Propelling himself into the air, he flew away as fast as his wings would allow. As each flutter of his webbed wings moved him further away from the battlefield, Meta-Knight watched the clouds around him fade away as the malevolent side of his personality won over and he lost consciousness…

Blade padded silently into King Dedede's throne room. Fortunately no one was there. The actual location of the fiendish tyrant was unknown, yet the least of the young knight's concerns. He really didn't know where to find the serum, but decided that although Dedede was cunning he had a habit of being quite careless and may have left the vial somewhere. Especially with the thought that Meta-Knight was out of the way and Kirby knew neither of the oncoming war nor the serum. Unfortunately, Blade's search came up short. As he turned to leave the room he heard a small sound from below his foot. The young disciple lifted his boot to find a piece of paper. He picked up the slightly crumpled paper and scanned over it. It looked to be a formula, with various symbols and the names of chemicals listed. On the bottom corner of the page was the words "Behemoth Serum." It appeared to be a duplicate, as if King Dedede had made a few copies of it to give to Nightmare. This copy must have slipped the tyrant's grasp and either Dedede didn't notice it missing or was too irresponsible to care. Blade grinned beneath his helmet as joy overwhelmed him. This was perfect! Now they could save Meta-Knight!

As Blade turned to leave, a sudden noise startled him. He looked over his shoulder to see the device King Dedede used to summon monsters activating on its own…

Kirby watched Meta-Knight's abrupt departure. Tuff let out a breath.

"What're we gonna do now?" Tuff questioned. Kirby ran to the young boy and grabbed onto his shirt while gesturing in the direction of Meta-Knight's withdrawal. "We can't go after him! Did you see what he almost did to me? To you?!!" Kirby mewled loudly, his gestures growing more agitated. Tuff sighed, exasperated, "How do you expect us to catch up to him? We can't fly!"

Kirby stopped, deep in thought. After a moment he suddenly grabbed Tuff's shirt once again and gestured in a different direction.

Tuff looked to the direction that Kirby was pointing at, "Kirby, that's where Dynablade lives…hey!" The little star warrior nodded his head vigorously as Tuff suddenly understood. "That's a good idea! After all you've done for her I'm sure Dynablade will help us! C'mon Kirby, lets go!"

Sword leaned back against the wall as he watched Escargoon's progress. The young soldier's patience was wearing thin. The king's lackey looked as if he was purposely taking his time. Suddenly, Escargoon stopped to wipe his brow. "You better get back to work, you're not taking any breaks. You're taking too long as it is!"

A scowl tugged the snail's lips as he looked over his shoulder at his captor. "Don't rush perfection! If you want this antidote done right, then you just have to wait!"

"Don't try me," Sword threatened. "My patience is wearing thin. I think I've been a slight too lenient on you." He withdrew his weapon, turning the blade in his hand. "I could be a bit harsher if you provoke me."

"I'm working as fast as I can!" Escargoon moaned, eyeing the sharp weapon.

"For your sake, you'd better…" Sword forewarned. 

Dynablade was perching in her next, the chick sleeping soundly beside her when Kirby and Tuff arrived. Their abrupt appearance initially startled the massive bird, but upon realizing the identity of the visitors she settled down.

"Hi Dynablade!" Tuff called. The giant creature answered with a great nod of her head. "Could you…could you do us a big favor?" Dynablade tilted her head slightly. Tuff explained their situation and the bird sat in silent contemplation. She turned to regard her sleeping chick, then gave the two children a nod. "Thank you!" The massive creature lowered her wing, and once Kirby and Tuff climbed on she jumped off of her perch and glided through the air. Dynablade was much faster in the air than Meta-Knight, as she was much larger and possessed a greater aerial skill. "Now…how are we going to find Meta-Knight?"

Suddenly, Kirby stood up and jumped onto Dynablade's head. His body was almost weightless and did nothing to disturb the bird's flight. The small star warrior pointed in one direction, uttering a small sound. Dynablade dipped one wing down and turned to that direction. Tuff watched the exchange from his place on the creature's broad back. Kirby appeared to have some kind of sixth sense, an intuition that allows him to locate his missing leader. He wasn't sure whether Kirby was able to sense Meta-Knight because he was a star warrior, or because he was a monster. Nevertheless, Tuff hoped for Kirby's sake that Meta-Knight's malady was reversible. The young boy knew that nothing would pain his friend more than having to destroy the only kin he had left…

"Wait, look! I see em'!" Tuff cried, pointing at a small flying figure straight ahead of them. The figure could only have been Meta-Knight, the physique and wings were unmistakable. Yet, now that they found him, what exactly were they going to do? Neither Tuff nor Kirby thought to plan ahead, but that didn't stop the star warrior. A look of determination on his young visage, he soundlessly directed Dynablade to fly over his predecessor. Meta-Knight could hear and feel the presence of the large bird, and turned around in mid-flight. He growled in a voice that was not his own, and shot a bolt from his sword.

Dynablade swerved out of the way, a squawk loudly erupting from her. Tuff and Kirby held on tightly, not wishing to fall from this high up. Meta-Knight flapped his wings hard and propelled himself over Dynablade. His eyes were soulless, only rage and the primitive want for violence resided. Apparently whatever had formerly stilled the old soldier's hand was no longer there. Yet this did nothing to dissuade Kirby. Dynablade began to flap her wings harder, the resulting gust stronger than Meta-Knight's newly developed wings was capable of handling. As he tumbled through the air, he sent another bolt at the bird. This time the bolt landed on the underside of Dynablade's wing. With a cry of pain, Dynablade struggled to maintain balance. Meta-Knight flapped his wings vigorously trying to regain control. As he fell below Dynablade, Kirby jumped off of her head and grabbed onto his struggling adversary. The two tumbled down and hit the ground, Meta-Knight's wings taking the impact.

With a roar of pain, Meta-Knight hurled Kirby off of him and once again attempted flight. His wings would not comply, as they were twisted in awkward positions. Kirby slowly climbed onto his feet. Somehow during the whole ordeal Meta-Knight managed to maintain a death-like grip on his sword. Uttering a low, menacing growl Meta-Knight stabbed his sword into the floor. The ground then began shaking, knocking Kirby off of his feet. Pulling the sword cleanly from the grassless terrain he charged forward, intending to take advantage of the temporarily fallen Kirby. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye he saw a stream of light. Before he could react a powerful blow struck him in the temple. A loud crack resounded as his mask absorbed the impact and he was sent reeling several feet, skidding a few more feet before coming to a stop.

Kirby's eyes widened in surprise as the source of the attack landed gracefully beside him.

"Mind if I join the party?!" Knuckle Joe asked, a determined and arrogant grin lining his features…

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Author's Notes: Yay! Finally finished chapter 4! ::Does happy dance:: I think this chapter went pretty well, I spent quite a lot of time working on it. I hope you enjoy it, and I will post Chapter 5 as soon as possible. Honestly I'm not certain how long this story is going to end up, but I do know what direction I want to take it. =D I want to issue a thanks to Kirbster for typing up Knuckle Joe's episode for me! It's going to be a big help especially this next chapter! I also want to give thanks to Ivyna J. Spyder_ for giving me grammatical advice. Finally, I want to thank everyone who has read and reviewed my fic! Your wonderful input has been a great incentive for me to continue! Thank you very much, and I hope that the rest of my story doesn't disappoint! =D _


	5. Chapter 5

****

Shades of Grey - Chapter 5

Tiff was sitting in her room, studying the textbooks on biochemistry and physical science. They were moderately difficult for her to read, but nonetheless she found them very interesting and as time went on she began to have a better grasp of it. Suddenly, Lololo and Lalala flew in.

"Tiff! Tiff!" Lololo cried, hysterical. "Meta-Knight! It's Meta-Knight!"

Tiff lifted her head to regard the distraught twins. "What about Meta-Knight?! What's going on?"

"S-Something's wrong with him!" Lalala stammered. "H-he's turned into s-some kind of monster!"

"We have to find Sword and Blade! Tuff told us to look for Sword and Blade! Do you know where they are?" Lololo clamored.

"Calm down you guys!" Tiff commanded sternly. "What do you mean Meta-Knight's turned into a monster?" The duo stopped to take a breath.

"He was training us when suddenly he started looking sick," Lalala began.

"He grew these giant bat wings, and his eyes…" Lololo shuddered.

"His eyes were frightening! We don't know why this is happening! Tuff told us to find Sword and Blade, that maybe they being close to Meta-Knight would know what's going on!" Lalala explained.

"Alright. C'mon, we'll all go look for them," Tiff sprang out from her seat and ran out of the room, Lololo and Lalala floating above her…

"Joe!" Tuff cried, excitement and relief evident in his young voice. "What are you doing here?"

"I was spying on Nightmare and saw the whole exchange," Joe answered, rubbing his nose. "I saw what Dedede and his thugs did to Meta-Knight! Once the N.M.E. executive left I used the monster teleportation device to get here. Afterwards I was able to sense Meta-Knight's and Kirby's energy signatures and followed them here."

"You know why he's like this?" Tuff asked.

"King Dedede made a serum that turns ordinary people and animals into monsters," Blade explained from his place behind them. Tuff turned to regard the loyal soldier. Kirby looked at Meta-Knight, who slowly and shakily began to push himself onto his feet. He growled deeply with rage as he turned to regard his children and their new ally. There was a large crack in the mask just above Meta-Knight's right eye. Temporarily crippled wings twitched as the fine bones began to reshape themselves. Despite Meta-Knight's transformation, he continued to have the quick-healing capability that was granted to all star warriors. Meta-Knight's sword flickered violently, his eyes matching the same spastic pattern.

"Blade! Where are Lololo and Lalala?" Tuff asked.

The young soldier tilted his head slightly. "I haven't seen them."

"But I sent them to get you and Sword…" Tuff said softly as worry engulfed him. He dearly hoped that nothing happened to the little twins.

"Sword is back at the castle with Escargoon," Blade explained. "They're making a cure. Lololo and Lalala might be there."

"Escargoon?" Tuff asked. "Can we trust him?"

"Probably not, but we really don't have much of a choice at the moment," Blade answered.

"Right now I think we have something more important to worry about…" Joe said softly, his eyes never leaving Meta-Knight. Slowly the young fighter took a step forward. "Meta-Knight! It's me, Joe! Wake up!" The disturbed creature responded with a fierce growl. Joe's words appeared to evoke nothing from him, as if Meta-Knight didn't recognize him at all.

"He looks pretty awake to me…" Tuff mumbled, questioning his friend's choice of words.

Joe shook his head vigorously, "His consciousness is being squelched by the serum, but I think he can still hear and see everything." the young fighter's eyes narrowed with determination, "I lost my father to Nightmare, I won't let the same thing happen to Meta-Knight. Even if I have to beat sense back into him!" With that resolution, Joe dashed forward. Meta-Knight strafed aside and retaliated with a swing of his blazing sword. Joe jumped back in an attempt to dodge the assault, but was caught in the chest by the tip of the blade. With a frustrated growl, Joe staggered back as Meta-Knight continued swinging his sword in violent arcs. The Behemoth Serum had bestowed the old soldier not only with necromantic prowess, but also enhanced physical speed and stamina. Meta-Knight relentlessly continued his attacks, which Joe bravely evaded and blocked. Yet Joe and the children knew this could not go on much longer and soon his adversary would have the upper hand…

Sword stood in silence as Escargoon continued to sluggishly work on the cure. The young subordinate was beginning to really lose his patience.

"Are you ever going to finish?!" Sword snapped irritably. He felt as if Escargoon was taking as long as he possibly could. Likely it was to give the serum time to take effect.

"I'm almost done, keep your helmet on…" Escargoon grumbled.

"There you are!" Lololo cried as he, Lalala and Tiff abruptly ran in.

"What's going on?" Sword asked.

"What's Escargoon doing here?" Tiff asked.

"Something's wrong with Meta-Knight!" Lalala cried. "He's…turned into some kind of monster!"

"Oh no…" Sword gasped. "I didn't think it would have happened this soon…!"

A smiled played Escargoon's lips. "Looks like the serum's taken affect…"

"What serum?" Tiff's eyes narrowed. "I should have guessed it was something you and King Dedede did!"

"You better keep working on that antidote, or I won't hesitate to gut you like a fish and use your own damn toxin on you!" Sword threatened.

"I'm finished with it!" Escargoon muttered, "Now I'm leaving!"

"You're not going anywhere!" Sword warned.

"What's more important? Me, or the antidote?" Escargoon suddenly hurled the vial into the air. As Sword and the children scrambled to get it, he took the opportunity to retreat out of the room. Lalala flew up and caught it.

"I got it!" Lalala held the vial tightly, and flew over to Sword to give it to him. Tiff ran out after Escargoon, but upon exiting through the door found that Escargoon was already gone…

Meta-Knight continued his multiple assaults on his new antagonist. Despite his strength and stamina Joe couldn't keep this up much longer. 

Blade didn't want to fight his commander. Despite what anyone might think he didn't follow Meta-Knight simply because he was strong. Meta-Knight was also wise, determined, compassionate and did whatever he could to ensure the safety of everyone. Even when he and Sword tried to rob him, he risked his own life to protect them. He would sacrifice his own comfort, health and honor to provide it to those less fortunate. That was the Meta-Knight he knew, not this deranged monstrosity. Yet he was aware that Meta-Knight could not currently control his actions, and that he would want Blade and Joe to stop him.

Joe blocked yet another blow and staggered back. His breath came in short gasps, yet his opponent wasn't even slowing down. The young fighter never imagined how much stronger Meta-Knight had become. However while Meta-Knight's rage induced attacks granted him enormous strength, it also caused him to be more reckless and Joe began to notice openings in his assaults. During one such opening Joe sent a kick to the center of the veteran's mask. A large crack resounded and Meta-Knight reeled back. Before he could regain his bearings Blade reluctantly charged at him. The young knight sent a barrage of sword attacks at his leader, who deflected the blows and returned with a heavy blow of his own. Blade was knocked down onto his back, but before his commander could take advantage of the situation Joe sent a vulcan jab in his direction. 

Meta-Knight raised his sword to block, and counteracted with a bolt of his own. Before the beam could connect, Kirby sucked it up.

The little star warrior jumped into the air and transformed into "Sword Kirby." Meta-Knight stepped back as Kirby landed before him. 

_Kirby is a mirror._

Meta-Knight's eyes flickered.

_The form that he has copied is your own._

Shaking his head, Meta-Knight raised his sword threateningly.

_It is what you do that makes you a monster._

Kirby too raised his sword, but in a more defensive position.

_I will protect Kirby, no matter the cost._

The little star warrior could see the internal war that raged in the mind of his predecessor. It was reflected in the spastic glow in his eyes and sword. Suddenly, his eyes flashed persimmon, and he dashed forward. Kirby and Meta-Knight clashed swords.

Kirby broke the clash and blocked another sword assault.

_Kirby is the last of the star warriors…_

Meta-Knight jumped back and raised his sword up. The weapon began to glow brightly. Kirby tensed, bracing himself. 

"Meta-Knight, no!" Joe cried. He sent a vulcan jab at the old soldier, who blocked and deflected the beam back at him. The young fighter jumped out of the way, but the beam struck a nearby boulder. The boulder exploded, sending both Joe and Blade sailing. Finally, Meta-Knight's glowing eyes met Kirby's onyx eyes and he aimed his sword at his former disciple.

_Kirby is our last hope…_

A huge beam shot from the sword. Kirby held his own blade in front of him and braced himself for the pain that was likely to follow. Yet it never came…

The little creampuff opened his eyes and looked behind him to see the remains of burned and ravaged trees and boulders. Meta-Knight had missed, albeit barely.

Meta-Knight's aim was always accurate, a miss from this close range couldn't have been an accident. Kirby looked back over to his former mentor. A muffled clang resounded as his glimmering sword struck the dirt. His eyes were flickering violently as his consciousness fought for control.

"Lord Meta-Knight?" Blade said softly, stepping closer. "Are you alright sir?" There was no response. Slowly the young lieutenant reached his hand forward. Abruptly Meta-Knight's eyes glowed red, representing the lost battle against the newly developed malevolent side of his psyche. Meta-Knight raised his hands and sent a bolt into the breastplate of his loyal subordinate. The impact sent Blade reeling into Kirby, knocking them both down. A demonic red glow resonated from the old soldier's eyes as, the physical representation of the serum's success in burying his consciousness. 

He reached down to pick up his fallen weapon, when Knuckle Joe shot it away with a vulcan jab. As Meta-Knight turned to regard the current threat, Knuckle Joe sent another vulcan jab in his direction. Meta-Knight reacted by flapping his wings violently, but instead of granting him flight they sent a jolt of agony through the creature's back; a painful reminder that they had not yet healed. The chi projectile hit its mark, and Meta-Knight's previously damaged mask now did little to soften the blow. With a frightening cry, Meta-Knight stumbled back. Joe took this opportunity to charge, and taking hold of his adversary's shoulder pads he shoved him against one of the few large boulders that was scattered around the terrain. Violently Meta-Knight struggled, and it took all of Joe's strength to contain him.

Kirby ran forward to help, but Tuff grabbed onto the little star warrior.

"No," Tuff said sternly with a shake of his head. "You're staying here!"

"Meta-Knight!" Joe cried, "It's me, Joe! Listen to me! You've got to fight the serum's control! Remember my father? Remember what happened to him?!" His words failed to stimulate a response. 

Kirby struggled against Tuff's hold, but was incapable of escaping.

"Look!" Joe quickly reached into his shirt and pulled out his necklace with a locket containing a picture of himself as an infant. "You were his best friend! Do you remember what you told me? He too was turned into a monster, but his love for me allowed him to fight against it! Love saved his soul, even if it couldn't save his life. But it can save yours, a cure's being made even as we speak! You've got to hold on until then! Think, there's got to be someone you want to fight for! Someone you want to live for!"

Kirby flattened himself, slipping from Tuff's grasp. "Kirby, no!" The little star warrior ran to Joe and Meta-Knight before Tuff could catch him.

"Medanigh!" Kirby cried. Both fighters turned to regard the little star warrior.

When Joe looked back at Meta-Knight, he noticed that Kirby's gentle voice had affected the old soldier. The struggles had ceased completely. His eyes were still crimson, but they no longer lacked spirit. In fact, it looked as if the sound touched something that had forcefully been buried deep within him. It was the first word Kirby had said other than his own name.

"That's right…" Joe said, looking back at Kirby. "Kirby, say it again."

"Medanigh! Medanigh!" Kirby repeated. There was no fear in his voice. Despite the thrashing that Meta-Knight gave to him, Joe and Blade the little star warrior felt no apprehension. In Kirby's eyes Meta-Knight was the gentle old soldier who guided, nurtured and protected him, even when his actions spoke otherwise. All Kirby cared about was the current distress of his mentor, and the want to help.

"G…Get him away!" Meta-Knight stammered. Joe looked back to him. His crimson orbs were now flickering emerald as his consciousness fought once again for control. "D…don't let me…hurt him!"

"It's ok," Joe said soothingly, "I'm not going to let you hurt Kirby."

The little pink creampuff walked over to his predecessor and hugged him. Meta-Knight cringed, but Joe held onto his arms.

Tuff and Blade watched from their respective places, not really sure what to do at this point. Neither could decipher whether or not he was still dangerous.

Meta-Knight's eyes were glowing a soft green as he watched Kirby's open shows of affection. "Y…you said an antidote was being made?"

Blade nodded, "Yes sir. Sword's forcing Escargoon to make a cure. He should almost be done. All we have to do then is test it." Joe slowly released the old soldier's arms. "Please sir, just hang on until then…"

"I…don't know if I can…" The old soldier admitted. "We can't…afford such a risk…"

"Try telling Kirby that!" Joe gestured to the little creampuff, who was still cuddling Meta-Knight's side. "It looks like he thinks the risk is worth it."

The elder star warrior tenderly rubbed Kirby's head. "Yes, but…if it fails…?"

"If it doesn't work we'll make another cure!" Sword answered. The others turned to see him, Tiff and the twins approaching.

"Lololo, Lalala!" Tuff exclaimed, relief washing over him. "You're alright!"

"Sorry, it took us awhile to find Sword," Lololo explained.

"Now that I think about it, we never saw King Dedede," Lalala murmured thoughtfully as she crossed her arms. "He's pretty big to miss…"

"We have the cure!" Tiff cheered. "We just need something to test it on!"

"Blade, did you ever find the Behemoth Serum?" Sword asked. His partner searched through his armor and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper from one of the hidden pockets.

"Yes I did, in a sense. I could only find the formula," Blade answered.

"Don't worry, I'll make some of that serum," Tiff said. "Then we can test it."

"See?" Knuckle Joe stated, looking back at Meta-Knight. He rubbed his nose. "Hold on just a little while. We'll get that cure ready before you know it!"

"Alright…" The old veteran said with a nod. His wings folded against his back as he returned Kirby's embrace.

Suddenly, the sky began to darken considerably.

"What's going on?" Lololo asked as he looked up at the clouds.

"Storms don't come this quick in Dreamland…" Meta-Knight said as lightning streaked across the skies. As a thunderous boom reverberated through the skies, Kirby shuddered and the old knight tightened his grip. "This kind of weather isn't normal."

"Oh no…" Joe gasped as realization struck him.

"What is it?" Tuff asked upon seeing the stricken expression on the older boy's face.

Joe's voice was barely audible, "The war has begun!"

__

Author's Notes: Finally the war against the ravages of writer's block has ended in my favor! ::Evil laughter:: This chapter was immensely difficult for me to write. I guess it was the emotional charge and the fact that so many people were now involved I had to make sure no one got left out. Keeping everyone IC was also difficult. I'm sorry it took so long, I hope this chapter was worth the wait! Hopefully the next chapter won't be so difficult, and I'll have it up and running as soon as possible!


	6. Chapter 6

Shades of Grey - Chapter 6

"What?!" Tuff cried at Joe's cryptic announcement. "How do you know?"

"When I was spying on Nightmare, I found that they had created some kind of device that can revive fallen monsters," Joe explained. "They were going to start the war as soon as they revived all of their strongest warriors…"

"Wolfwrath!" Meta-Knight cried, drawing a confused look from everyone. "That's right! I saw him right before I was injected with the Behemoth Serum!"

Joe nodded. "He along with Kracko were the first to be revived," The young fighter looked up towards the sky as droplets of rain began to fall on his face. "If Kracko is showing himself that means the war must have begun!"

The skies flashed as lightning streaked across the skies along with a thunderous roar. Kirby hid his face in Meta-Knight's dented mask.

"Kirby's not ready yet…" the old soldier said softly.

"I have an idea!" Tiff stated. "Listen to me. We're going to need a plan, and we're going to need Kirby and Meta-Knight at their best. Blade, give me the Behemoth Serum formula. Sword, give me the antidote. I'll make the formula and test the antidote. We'll have to lay low until then, especially if all of the old monsters have been reborn."

"Where can we go?" Tuff asked. "You gotta know the monsters are gonna be looking for Kirby and Meta-Knight!"

"How about Chef Kawasaki's?" Lololo suggested. "He's got a big basement where he stores all his food!"

"Yeah!" Lalala nodded in agreement. "He's really nice too. I know he'll help us!"

What began as light rain swiftly escalated to a steady downpour. Kirby whimpered, his face still buried in the safety of his elder's mask. Meta-Knight folded his newly healed wings around his younger brethren, shielding him from the rain. "Alright then, lets go. We can't stay out here."

"You mean the war has restarted?" Chef Kawasaki asked. He was quite surprised when the doorbell rang and upon opening it found himself horded by the group of children, Joe, a winged Meta-Knight and his two subordinates. However Tiff was quick to summarize the situation, yet even after the explanation Kawasaki was quite confused.

Blade nodded. "Sir Meta-Knight and Kirby are not in fighting condition. Please can we spend the night in your basement? The monsters can't find us here."

The tenderhearted young chef looked over to Meta-Knight. The veteran was slouched and obviously weary, his wings drooped and his eyes glowed dimly. In his arms Kirby had fallen asleep, as fatigued finally won out over his senses. "Alright. You all must be hungry. I'll make you something to eat. I also have some blankets, but I can only let you stay here one night ok?"

"Thank you…" Meta-Knight said softly. "I promise we'll be out tomorrow…"

"Here, let me take Kirby…" Kawasaki tenderly took Kirby from the old soldier and led the children downstairs. The basement was quite large, but wasn't overly well lit. The only source of light in the room was from a small hanging lamp. Many packages of food were scattered around the room, but in the center of the room there was a large empty space. Kawasaki gently placed Kirby on the floor and left to get some blankets. Meta-Knight sat down by a group of boxes with a sigh of exhaustion.

"Thank you Chef," Joe said as he rubbed his nose. "We'll make sure nothing happens to your restaurant."

"That's alright," he replied as he returned with the blankets. He wrapped one around Kirby and handed the others to each of the children. "If you need anything just call." 

"Wait, um…Mr. Kawasaki?" Tiff asked. "Do you have a desk I can work on? There's a formula I have to make…"

"Sure, I even have some chemicals and lab equipment if you need some," the young chef replied. "I don't have much, I once dabbled in science but it was only a passing fancy."

"That would be great! Thank you so much!" Tiff said. With a nod, Kawasaki brought in a desk, chair and some lab equipment with the help of Tuff, Joe, Lololo and Lalala. Afterwards Kawasaki treaded back up the stairs, leaving the children to themselves.

"I say we take turns watching the restaurant," Joe suggested, rubbing his nose wearily. "Just incase the monsters do attack, we need someone to warn the others."

"I think that's a good idea," Tuff answered with a yawn. He too was tired from the day's events. Tiff sat down at the desk and began working on the formula. Suddenly, Kawasaki walked back in, holding trays of food in his arms.

"Here children, eat up," The chef ordered as he set the meals before them. "If you need anything just call." 

"Thank you Mr. Kawasaki," Tuff said with a vigorous nod and began munching on the food. He hadn't realized just how hungry he was until just then. Apparently hunger spreads, as the others began inhaling their food in hordes. Even Kirby woke up and began eating his share. Fortunately, he was too tired to use his inhale or he would have eaten everything in the room. "C'mon Tiff, Meta-Knight. You two also gotta eat."

"I'm not hungry…" Meta-Knight said sleepily, "Let Kirby eat my share…"

The little creampuff happily obliged. After finishing both his and Meta-Knight's shares he fell back to sleep.

"No, I'm alright," Tiff replied as she read over the Behemoth formula and began to work on its creation. "Save some for me, I have a lot of work to do."

Upon finishing his meal, Tuff yawned loudly, "We really need to think of a plan…"

"I think we're all too tired to think right now," Sword murmured.

"He's right," Joe stood up, gathering the empty trays in his arms. "I'm going to stand watch first. After a few hours Tuff'll go next, then Sword and finally Blade." With that final word the young fighter walked up the stairs.

Tuff laid down, wrapping his blanket around himself. Lololo and Lalala laid down next to each other on one of the numerous packages, sharing a blanket. Blade and Sword sat down next to each other and leaned back against a line of packages. Meta-Knight wrapped his wings around himself and Tiff continued to work on the serum…

Tiff wiped one hand across her eyes as she finally completed the serum. She was quite tired and had no idea how long she had been working. Yet Joe sleeping a few feet away was proof that she had been working at least a few hours. Now it was time to test the antidote. She poured some of the Behemoth Serum into a heated vial and added a small amount of the antidote. There was no initial response, but Tiff decided to wait a few more hours to see if there was going to be a delayed response. If the Behemoth Serum took awhile to take effect, the antidote may work the same way. With that in mind Tiff leaned back and stretched her arms, figuring that she would just have to wait until then.

She looked over to Meta-Knight. He was facing partially away from her, towards Kirby. His eyes were glowing softly, indicating that he was still awake. Whether he had awoken some time during the night or if sleep had escaped him completely she didn't know. Despite his attempts to mask his distress, Tiff could see a slight tremor in his wings and frame. She could only imagine his internal struggle against the serum that continued to course through his veins, and wished there was something that she could do to comfort him. Suddenly, an idea came to her and she got up off her chair…

Meta-Knight sat silently watching Kirby's peaceful slumber. Despite his fatigue sleep continued to escape him. Constantly he fought against the influence of the serum, and the constant conflict left him feeling weak, ravaged. A feeling of hopelessness threatened to overwhelm him. Once again he questioned why anyone fancied him such a great warrior, a hero even. It was blasphemy. Just because he happened to survive doesn't make him any stronger, any better than the slaughtered.

Suddenly the old soldier was startled out of his thoughts when he felt a pair of hands gently touch his back.

"Relax," Tiff's soft voice came from behind as she began to rub his back, "I finished the antidote and it's being tested now. In just a few more hours we'll know whether or not it's going to work."

"What if it doesn't…?" His voice was barely audible.

"It will," she said sternly. "And if it doesn't, then I'll make one that does!" Suddenly she paused.

"What's wrong?" Meta-Knight asked as he felt the hands freeze in place.

"I never knew how soft your skin was…" Tiff giggled as she continued to rub his back. "I thought maybe because you were older, or because you're a soldier your skin would be…I don't know, more rough? Calloused maybe? But no, it feels just like Kirby's."

"Yes, well…" The veteran felt slightly awkward at that comment. "Our anatomy allows us to heal injuries more effectively, as well as flatten and expand when the situation calls for it…"

"Hey, wait a minute…" Tiff thought for a moment, "Can I ask you something? I'm not sure but it might be a personal question."

"What is it?"

"You and Kirby are one of the same, right? I mean, you're both of the same race and body structure. Does that mean you can inhale?" Tiff asked. That would explain why Meta-Knight would know so much about Kirby's abilities, yet she had never seen Meta-Knight emulate any of the capabilities shared by his younger brethren.

There was a long pause, "No. Not anymore"

"Oh…is it something that you lose with age?" Tiff inquired.

Meta-Knight sighed softly. "No. I may have survived the war but it doesn't mean that I left unscathed."

"What happened?" she asked tenderly.

"It was during the beginning of the war, I was only a mere lieutenant yet I was given command of a small group of fighters. We were to draw the fire of the enemy while the rest of the army ambushed them from behind. It was during that fight I met Wolfwrath for the first time." Meta-Knight explained. His wings twitched occasionally as Tiff kneaded between them. "I was horribly outmatched, Wolfwrath was much stronger and faster than I was. He had me cornered and had spit out one of his fireballs. Without anything available to block it, I decided to try to inhale it. It was a dreadful mistake. The fire was scalding, beyond anything I had ever tried to inhale before. My face and mouth were ablaze, and immediately I discharged the dreaded thing before fainting from the pain. But upon awakening and laying eyes upon my own visage I came to find that the damage had been done. Upon losing that ability I lost all others that came with it."

"How awful…" Tiff gasped.

"For weeks I tried to inhale, but it was to no avail and ultimately I had to give up. At that point I decided to take up the sword, as it was the ability that I was best with…" Meta-Knight finished, his voice growing soft.

"Is that…why you wear the mask?" Tiff asked. He responded with a weary nod.

"Yes…the fire left a horrific scar, and it was a constant reminder of my failure…" He replied, his voice barely above a whisper. "I couldn't bare to see it, and ever since that horrendous battle I have donned the mask."

The old soldier grew quiet, and silently Tiff rubbed his back.

"Well…" She said softly, breaking the silence, "If it's any consolation, I think the mask looks cool."

"Thank you Tiff," Meta-Knight replied softly. "But…after all this…why …how could people view me as some kind of hero?"

"What?" The young girl asked, surprised at his abrupt change of subject.

"Sorry, ignore me. I am tired and am babbling nonsense…" He said with a slight wave of his hand.

"No, please continue…" Tiff urged gently. "What did you mean by that?"

"Well…why do people view me in such high regard? Their beliefs are unfounded. If I was as great a hero as everyone fancied I would be able to fight the monsters on my own. I would be able to fight against this serum without anyone's help… I would…" A soft sigh escaped him, "…I don't know, be stronger…"

"You want to know what I think?" Tiff asked as she stopped kneading his back and hugged him around his shoulders. "I think that you have a distorted view on what it takes to be a hero. We don't expect you to be invincible, Meta-Knight. Why do you think Sword and Blade follow you? Because you had bested Wolfwrath that one time? Because they think you're invulnerable?" She rested her head on his back. "No, it was because you risked your life to save theirs even when they tried to rob you before. You're courageous, wise and benevolent. That's why they regard you so highly."

There was a long pause. "You're very intuitive."

"I'm also right," Tiff said with a soft giggle. A small sound began to emit from the old soldier, startling the young girl. Upon listening for a moment realization dawned on her; Meta-Knight was snoring. It was about time he fell asleep! She gently released her grip and picked up one of the left over blankets. Afterwards she laid down next to the slumbering Kirby and wrapped the blanket around herself. Immediately she fell asleep…

_Kirby and Meta-Knight stood before an army of monsters. The slathering beasts regarded their newfound prey with a frightening eagerness. Yet the two star warriors were unafraid, for both knew that this could spell the end and yet they looked forward to this confrontation with an almost enthusiasm. Perhaps it was because they had been born and bred to be the sworn enemy of the monsters. For as long as the elder star warrior knew, all throughout the existence of his race they had fought generation after generation of monsters. It was as if their purpose was merely to ensure safety to all innocence, to balance out against evil._

Blow after blow the monsters fell, yet even more came in droves. It was if they never ended, yet this conformation only heated Meta-Knight's bloodlust. He wanted to destroy every last living monster - As that was his true and only real purpose. Yet he couldn't help but wonder - After he and Kirby finally succeeded in slaughtering all of the remaining monstrosities, what next? What would there be left for him, for Kirby? If his war for peace ever did end, what other direction could he have?

He didn't expect to live through the war, but perhaps it was for the better. Not only would death at the hands of his many antagonists bring him honor, but would ensure that throughout his life he had a purpose.

At one point in the battle, instinct began to guide his hand. The monsters came in waves and yet he annihilated them all. Blood flowed like the currents of a river, darkening the grassy terrain that served as their battlefield a shade of crimson.

Finally, the monsters were defeated and he alone stood in the battlefield. He alone…

Where is Kirby?

Terror gripped him as he realized that Kirby was among the fallen. He looked down at the fatally wounded star warrior as panic threatened to overwhelm him.

Those wounds are not the inflictions of beasts.

Only a sword could cause such damage.

A numbing dread coursed through the old soldier's veins as he realized what he had done. In his bloodlust he had become careless, and Kirby was the one who suffered for his foolishness.

What have I done?!

Suddenly large, webbed wings protruded from his back as a demonic laugh escaped him.

This is wrong!

He raised his sword into the air as the fallen monsters began to rise.

Yet Kirby remained inanimate.

Despite his mental commands to stop, Meta-Knight flapped his wings and propelled himself into the sky. His legions of monsters followed.

Why is this happening?!  
Hovering in the skies Meta-Knight aimed his sword at Cappytown. In the streets below, the children he once protected gazed up at him with unrepressed terror.

Energy gathered before the cursed blade, his eyes brightening in accordance to the unholy weapon. The beam shot out of his sword and engulfed the town in flames. Agonized screams echoed through the air, but none as loud as the resonating maniacal laughter…

Meta-Knight awoke with a start. His stomached twisted in a painful knot as the dream vaguely replayed in his mind. A sudden nudge pulled him out of his shadowed thoughts and he realized that he had his wings tightly wrapped around him. The old soldier parted his wings to find Kirby standing before him, blanket in hand.

"Bad dream?" Kirby mewled softly. Meta-Knight regarded his younger brethren with confusion, but ultimately nodded. The little star warrior gave his elder a look of understanding, then sat down before him and wrapped the blanket around himself and Meta-Knight. Finally, after that was completed, Kirby nuzzled up against his mask. "Better?"

The gesture initially baffled Meta-Knight, but suddenly recognized its meaning. When Kirby had a nightmare previously, the company of his elder soothed him. The little star warrior was merely trying to return the favor. This realization touched the old veteran, and his eyes glowed softly with content. "Better." With a childish smile Kirby yawned and fell back to sleep. With a loud yawn, sleep once again overtook the old knight…

After the long night, dawn finally approached. Tuff was one of the first to rise, and out of curiosity he looked at Tiff's lab experiment. With a gasp, he ran over to Tiff and shook her to wakefulness.

"What…what's wrong?" Tiff mumbled. "What is it?"

"Does the cure work?" Tuff asked. Tiff rubbed her eyes and sat up.

"I don't know," she answered with a yawn. "Let me see…" The young girl pulled herself onto her feet and carefully examined the vial. The Behemoth Serum and the antidote had mixed to create…water? Tiff tested the contents of the vial. It was purified water, the antidote completely nullified the effects of the serum! "It works! It works!" She ran over to Meta-Knight, and was slightly surprised to see Kirby sleeping with him. With a shrug she knelt down and gently shook his shoulder. "Meta-Knight!"

The old soldier's eyes glowed, indicating his arousal. "What is it?"

"The antidote!" Tiff cheered. "It works!"

"That's great!" Meta-Knight answered. The young girl sterilized a syringe and transferred the contents of the antidote from the vial to the syringe.

"It will take a few hours to work," Tiff explained tenderly as he raised his arm and allowed her to inject the antidote into his veins.

"As long as it works…" Meta-Knight answered. His arm immediately healed after she pulled out the needle.

"Awesome!" Tuff whooped. "Now we can think of a plan and kick some monster butt!"

Lololo and Lalala stirred with all of the noise. "What's going on?"

Blade treaded down the steps, as he was the last one assigned to watch the restaurant. "What's all the commotion?"

"The cure's going to work," Tiff explained as she stood.

"That's awesome!" Joe said as he stretched. "Now we can think of a plan."

Sword, who had awakened early and had been hanging out with Blade and Chef Kawasaki, walked down the stairs along with the chef himself.

"You're not discussing plans on an empty stomach!" Kawasaki said with a hearty laugh. In his arms he carried numerous trays of food and set them before the children. "Good luck with your journey!" the young chef said sincerely as he treaded back up the stairs.

Sword sat down next to Blade as the group sat down in a circle and began to munch on their food. "Joe, you said that you had been spying on them and that's how you know about the device that revives fallen monsters. What else do you know?"

Meta-Knight gently nudged Kirby, who awoke with a hearty yawn and eagerly began to eat his meal. Joe rubbed his nose thoughtfully. "Well, that's gonna be their greatest weapon. However it does have one big weakness. The revived monsters are only soulless shells of their former selves, their life is sustained only through telepathic waves the machine emits. If the machine is ever destroyed, all of the revived monsters fall with it."

"So all we have to do is destroy the device and we'll already have the upper hand?" Tiff asked. Joe nodded.

"Where is the device located?" Lalala asked.

"At N.M.E. Base…" Joe leaned back on his elbows. "That's where this plan becomes difficult."

"It will obviously be heavily guarded…" Blade pointed out.

"It is…" Joe stated. "…against star warriors. But you see, Nightmare thinks that I am one of their own, and they have no idea about Sword, Blade and you kids."

"So if Kirby and I draw their fire, you all can sneak in and destroy the device," Meta-Knight said with a nod. "After that is done, Kirby and I can take care of the remaining monsters. They can't be that powerful if they're so desperate as to revive fallen monsters so they could have strong warriors."

"We'll go in groups so we can better avoid detection," Sword offered.

"It will also increase our chances of finding the device," Blade stated.

"There are two ways we can get in," Joe explained. "One way is through the air vents, the other is through a secret passage that connects to the underside of their fortress. Blade you, Lalala and Tuff will go through the air vents. Sword, Lololo and I will go through the secret passage. Kirby and Meta-Knight, you guys can attract their attention to the front of the fortress while we make our move. But first we're gonna have to sneak through Dedede's castle and use his monster transport system."

"Leave that to me," Tiff said with a smile, "I'll distract Dedede and Escargoon while you use the transport device."

"Sounds like a good plan." Meta-Knight said softly. His wings folded against his back as he climbed onto his feet. Finally he regarded the children. "But before we go, are you children sure you want to do this? It is very dangerous."

"We know, Meta-Knight!" Lololo nodded vigorously.

"We're ready!" Lalala said.

"This is what you trained us for!" Tuff exclaimed.

"This involves all of us," Tiff stated. "We're going to claim our own destiny, not leave it in the hands of Nightmare!"

"Ready!" Kirby cheered.

"Alright then," Meta-Knight's eyes flashed. "Lets go!"

__

Author's Notes: Yay! I was able to finish Chapter 6 in time! ::Does happy dance:: The next chapter will not likely come for a few weeks because the computer I'm using has to be disconnected during Christmas Break. The computer we have at home is old and slow and probably won't be able to post chapters. I am also starting my winter job soon, so I won't have any time to work on the chapter anyway. (Probably at McDonalds) I'm not sure how well I did on my tests, but I think I did well enough. Passed them at least! ::Does another happy dance:: I'm very pleased with this chapter, and decided not to end this one in a cliffhanger like I had done with the others because I know I won't be able to write the next chapter for a few weeks or so and it wouldn't be very nice to do that. LOL. What's funny is that Meta-Knight's entire dream sequence was written when I was half-asleep and stoned off Excedrin PM. I seem to write the most poetic when I'm drowsy, LOL. However I re-read the chapter and especially that scene and fixed the typos. I hope you like it! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!

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	7. Chapter 7

Shades of Grey - Chapter 7

Meta-Knight and the others were not quite sure what to expect when they had reached the castle of King Dedede. The more imaginative members of the little group had envisioned an entire horde of slathering zombie-like former monsters crawling all over the castle. The less imaginative had at the very least expected the castle to be guarded. The last thing anyone expected was to find the castle completely desolate. The only monster to be found was the Kracko, who continued to lurk through the skies like a dark omen. However the interior of the castle was very, very empty. The only sound was the padding of their feet. The silence was eerie. No soldiers. No monsters. No Dedede. No Escargoon. _Nothing!_

"Something is definitely not right…" Joe finally dared to whisper as the group walked down the hallway. Meta-Knight's wings twitched as his hand trailed to the hilt of his sword.

"With King Dedede allied with Nightmare, this place should be swarmed with monsters," Meta-Knight said softly as they neared the throne room. He looked over to Lololo and Lalala, who flew closely behind him. "The castle wasn't this empty when you two were here earlier, was it?"

"No.." Lololo whimpered. He along with his sister were terrified by the sheer emptiness of the castle. Kirby also followed his mentor closely, mewling softly in the process. Tiff and Tuff walked alongside each other, between Kirby and Joe.

"Where did all the people go?" Lalala mewled.

"Look, Lord Meta-Knight," Sword said as he gestured to a group of doors that lined the hallway. "There's our room, as well as the armory. Maybe we should stop here for a moment. The kids need a weapon, and you need to change your mask." The elder star warrior placed one hand on the cracked and dented object that concealed his visage.

"Alright," Meta-Knight said. "But for only a moment."

Meta-Knight walked into his room as the children walked into the armory. His room was just as empty as the rest of the castle. A slight tremor made its way through his wings. This situation was more unnerving than if they had found a thousand monsters roaming King Dedede's castle. At least if they had found a thousand monsters roaming the castle they would know exactly what they were up against. With this frightening emptiness, he had no means by which to prepare, no answers to his many questions. How many monsters had been revived? How many still-living monsters were there? Where were they? Meta-Knight had suspected that the entire reason that Nightmare allied itself with such a careless and weak tyrant at all was because of the convenient location of his castle. The castle was situated so very close to the last living star warriors…

It didn't make any sense.

None of it made any sense.

Meta-Knight took off his dented mask and noticed that his hand was shaking.

What if…

What if somehow they knew?

Knew Meta-Knight and the others were coming?

What if…

They were lying in wait…

…waiting to strike…

Meta-Knight threw his mask down as a tinge of self-anger flared up.

_Don't be so paranoid._

Even if his crazed thoughts were correct, what else could they really do? They couldn't just turn around and walk out. Meta-Knight picked up a fresh mask from his drawer and fastened the straps. All they could do was go on with their plan, and take any unexpected challenges as they come.

"Ooh!" Tuff breathed excitedly as he raced over to one of the largest swords in the armory. "This sword's got my name on it!"

"Tuff," his sister scolded. "Make sure you can actually carry the thing. It's probably better if you have a small sword that you can carry as opposed to a big heavy sword that you can't carry!"

"I can carry this sword!" Tuff declared as he attempted to lift it. However, he couldn't even get it off the ground.

"Your sister's right," Blade said as he walked over and easily lifted the sword that Tuff was attempting to pick up. "You're too inexperienced and untrained to handle a sword this heavy."

"Um…" Lololo glanced over at his twin. "We don't really know how to use swords at all…"

"There's other weapons here…" Lalala looked over the various instruments of destruction and cringed. "But…we really don't know how to handle them…"

"Hmm…" Joe rubbed his nose. "It might be better if you don't carry any weapons then. They would only hinder you."

"What about me?!" Tuff cried. "I'm big and strong! I can carry a weapon!"

"How about this…?" Tiff suggested as she handed Tuff a small dagger.

"I can carry a bigger weapon than that!" Tuff snapped.

"It's not the size of the weapon that's important," Meta-Knight said as he walked in. "It's how you use it."

"Oh alright…" Tuff picked up the belt that belonged with the dagger and tied it around his waist. Sword and Blade also picked up a few daggers and hid them within the hidden folds of their respective armors. Once they were finished, the group made their way to the throne room, which was as deserted as the rest of the castle.

This is it.

Meta-Knight and Kirby stood before the Monster Transportation Device, the others standing behind them.

_This is what all of our training comes down to._

There was still no sign of life, monster or otherwise. They had checked the monitor to see if there would be any monsters on the other side of the Transportation Device. There were none, not even the Nightmare Enterprise Executive was there. It was as desolate as the castle they currently occupied.

"This is freaky…" Tiff said as her frame shivered.

"Tiff…" Meta-Knight turned to face the young girl. "When we use the device, you should probably leave the castle. We have no way of determining what's going to happen…"

Tiff shook her head. Even the freakish emptiness of the castle failed to shake her resolve. "What if someone comes back? I'm going to stay here and make sure no one follows you. Even if I can't completely prevent it, I can at least provide distraction and grant you as much time as possible."

"Just promise to be careful, alright?" Joe stated.

"Yeah sis," Tuff crossed his arms. "You better not get yourself hurt."

"Don't worry!" Tiff shook her head. "I know how to take care of myself. Now go! We're running out of time!"

Meta-Knight nodded to her as he and the others simultaneously stepped onto the device and were spirited away in a pillar of light.

Tiff watched their exit, glad that her expression did not give away her apprehension. "Be careful guys…" Tiff said softly, her small voice echoing throughout the large, empty room…

_Author's Notes: Sorry it took me so long to complete this chapter. Until recently I have not had access to a functional computer. I know this chapter's a little bit short, but I wanted this chapter to lead into the next chapter. I finally know how I want to handle the upcoming chapters! ::Happy dance:: Finally the evil Writer's Block has been defeated once again! Bwahahaha! The next chapter should be coming soon, since I know what I want to do and how I want to do it. Thank you very much for your patience, and I hope to make your long wait worthwhile!_


	8. Chapter 8

Shades of Grey - Chapter 8

The Monster Transportation Device landed the righteous group in a small building. The children were moderately surprised, as they had presumed that the building they were currently inhabiting was going to be part of the main fortress when in fact it was but a mere substation. It was empty, as the monitor had shown. The air was thick with tension. It was just…not right. Where were all the monsters?! Meta-Knight turned to face the group.

"The Nightmare Headquarters is only a quarter mile from here," the old soldier explained. "Kirby and I will go there first, to draw their attention and their fire."

"We'll wait about a half-hour or so to give you and Kirby time," Joe said as he rubbed his nose. The young fighter turned his gaze to Blade, Lalala and Tuff. "When we get there I'll show you the location of the air vents. After that you're on your own, 'cuz I don't know where the device is exactly."

"We'll find it!" Tuff said as he puffed out his chest arrogantly. "You don't have to worry about that!"

Joe then turned to face Lololo and Sword, "Afterwards I'll lead you to the secret passage and we'll have to take it from there." His teammates responded with a simultaneous nod. Meta-Knight walked over to the only door to the substation, which lead outside. Placing his hand on the knob, he looked to his young disciple, who returned his gaze. 

"Are you ready, little one?" Meta-Knight asked, his voice soft. The little star warrior nodded in response. The old knight looked over to his companions and nodded to them. "Good luck. Don't allow yourselves to get hurt. I hope to see you all again." Finally his gaze once again rested on Kirby. "Lets go."

Meta-Knight pushed the door open and the two star warriors ran out of the substation. The others watched them leave with the hope that the two were not departing towards their own doom…

As the group had discussed their plan of action and the duo departed, no one noticed the eyes that watched their every move. Like a chameleon the figure blended into the emptiness and followed the two warriors…

Tiff sat down on the floor next to the Monster Transportation Device, hugging herself in the process. The room…the entire castle was so silent. Not even a day prior the keep had been anything but silent… but now it felt as thought time itself stood still. She hummed softly, just so that she could hear something other than the deafening silence…

A gasp escaped from the children as they looked outside and gazed upon their new surroundings. They currently stood before a vast wasteland. The sky was tinged red, as if the clouds themselves were condensed by blood. The ground spawned no grass and there were no traces of life - plant or otherwise. The adults of the team had already known the landscape and were not surprised by the ghastly scene they currently inhabited.

Joe noticed the morbid expressions of Tuff and the twins. "Not a pretty sight, is it?"

"This…" Sword said as he gestured to the crimson sky. "…is what war creates." Lololo whimpered, floating just behind Tuff. The thought that the blood of star warriors had been shed over this very ground brought a haunting image to the mind of the little creature. The tainted soil that the group currently stood upon was a ghastly reminder of the many legions of star warriors who had fought and died in their valiant attempts to protect the universe from the hell-spawn monsters. 

Thousands of years star warriors have died over this soil, as well as the soil of many other planets.

Lololo placed his small hands on his head.

Thousands of years star warriors have been losing the war against monsters.

_Thousands…_

"If so many star warriors died here, how are we supposed to survive?!" Lololo cried, his voice bordering on hysterical. "We can't do this! We're going to die, just like all of those star warriors did! We can't do this! We can't do this!"

"Stop it!" Tuff yelled.

"Lololo!" his sister grabbed him roughly by the arms and shook him. "Listen to yourself! You can't think that way, or we're doomed to fail for sure!"

Sword looked up to the floating duo. "This is probably the only chance we have. Nightmare is reviving deceased monsters, which means that they must be desperate. If we can destroy the device they use, all of the monsters revived will fall along with it. Then while they're weakened, we along with Meta-Knight and Kirby will finish them."

"Do you hear that?" Lalala cried, giving her brother another shake. "We can win! And if we win, we can end the war for good!"

"Right…end the war…" Lololo spoke softly. He slowly shook his head. Lalala released him.

Joe gave the two a sympathetic look. Despite their previous bravado, the twins were too young to be in such a scenario. They were thinking too much. During war, it is dangerous to think too much because then you become aware of just how dangerous a situation you have found yourself in. You begin to realize that within a given moment your life or the life of one you love could be snatched from your grasp. He looked up at the bloodstained sky. Soon it will be time for them to follow in their departed comrades' footsteps and there will be no more time for thought.

Meta-Knight ran alongside Kirby as the fortress began to show on the horizon. The fortress was so tall that despite the distance that still had to be covered, it could already be seen in the distance. His wings were pressed against his sides as not to slow him down. While the old soldier was getting much more used to his new appendages, he didn't want to depend on them too much. The antidote had taken effect, as he no longer felt the influence of the Behemoth Serum. However the wings were one of the direct effects of the serum and Meta-Knight didn't know whether or not the wings would fade away along with the other symptoms.

His glowing golden eyes watched his young partner running alongside him. Despite the little star warrior's endless enthusiasm and determination, Meta-Knight felt great apprehension. The old soldier never had the chance to properly train him and could only hope that his failure would not spell destruction of them all…

Tiff hummed softly to herself and slowly began rocking back and forth. The dead silence was nerve-wracking and she did everything she could to forget just how empty the castle was.

Suddenly she heard something. The young girl stopped her humming and strained her ears to listen. She was about to question her senses and sanity when she heard it again. It was a very feint moan. She found it frightening yet relieving at the same time. Hopeful that there was another sign of life in the castle other than herself, Tiff sprang onto her feet and ran towards the direction of the sound…

Tuff was sitting down just inside of the substation, Lololo and Lalala sitting on the ground beside him. Sword and Blade quietly watched the children. Not long ago they were playing, laughing, worry free. Now they sat there, quiet, melancholy, as if they had the weight of the world on their shoulders. Unfortunately, they were right.

Joe was leaning back against the doorframe, his arms crossed and his eyes never leaving the tainted sky. Finally he turned to face the others. "It's time."

A dense forest of decaying trees surrounded the fortress. The limbs were bare and the ground showed no signs that the trees had ever been blessed with leaves. They were like mangled claws that reached toward the crimson sky. The two star warriors stopped just before the forest, looking into the vast depths. Kirby whimpered, hiding his face against his mentor's mask.

Although he didn't want to rely on his wings too much, it would be a waste of time as well as an unnecessary risk to travel through the forest by foot. Meta-Knight gently rubbed Kirby's head. The scared little creampuff looked up at him.

"Don't worry, Kirby. I'm going to fly us over the forest." Kirby smiled with relief as Meta-Knight picked him up and flapped his wings. He propelled up into the skies and began to fly over the ghastly forest. He had barely flown a few feet when he began to hear the sounds of fighting emitting faintly from within the western side of the forest.

Fighting? Why would there be fighting?

Meta-Knight gasped. What if it was the others? What if they left too early, or were found? Holding Kirby close to him, he dipped one of his wings and turned to the direction of the sounds…

Unbeknownst to them, their trail was closely by the mysterious camouflaged stranger…

Tiff ran through the empty hallways, the hoarse and wretched moans slowly increasing in volume as she drew closer to the victim to whom those cries belonged. The wails began to echo through the hallways, almost as eerie as the silence that had previously inhabited the empty castle.

The source of the wails appeared to come from one of the guestrooms. Tiff ran in to find that the room had been completely ravaged. A lone figure was slouched over one of the many overturned chairs that scattered the room.

"Escargoon!"

Kirby looked up at his elder as they glided over the bare forest. Meta-Knight's eyes flickered with worry.

What if it was Joe and the others?

What if something went wrong?

What if they're dead?

If something happened to them, the plan would be ruined.

They would all die.

_The war would continue._

"Don' wowwee…" Kirby mewled. Meta-Knight looked down at the small creature. His speech had definitely improved dramatically within the last few days. From barely being able to utter his own name to being able to create short sentences… the old knight couldn't help but feel proud of his young disciple. Even if their plan is to go awry, as long as Kirby lived there was still hope.

_Hope for a future._

"Escargoon!" Tiff cried as she ran to his side. "What happened to you?!!"

The snail slowly lifted his head, "T…Tiff?" He pushed himself into a standing position, Tiff grabbed onto his arm to hold him up. "T-Tiff! Th.. Thank God for you… Don't…don't condemn.. him, Tiff…"

Multiple wounds covered his body, his blood was splattered all over the chair and floor. Tiff blanched a shade of white at his grim visage. "Who did this to you?!"

"It…wasn't his.. ..fault…"

"Whose fault, Escargoon?!"

"King Dedede…"

Meta-Knight flew above the sounds of fighting, but within the mass of deadened trees he could see nothing. Kirby too looked for the source of the sounds but his findings also came up short. There were occasional screams, but none of the voices sounded as if they belonged to Joe or the others; the old soldier was grateful for that.

A blow to the back surprised and disorientated Meta-Knight. He tumbled through the skies, his wings unable to steady him. Clutching onto Kirby protectively he crashed heavily into the tainted soil. Meta-Knight pushed himself onto his feet and examined Kirby, who looked startled but unharmed. Afterwards he drew his sword, attempting to find the source of the unexpected attack. The sounds of fighting could still be heard nearby, but neither star warrior could see them through the dense, decayed forestry.

Meta-Knight's keen senses detected a figure landing behind him and Kirby. He whirled around to see Biospark, the ninja that had betrayed the star warriors so long ago…

Joe and the others stopped before the large, decayed forest that surrounded the headquarters.

Lalala cringed, "Meta-Knight and Kirby went in there…?"

"They probably flew over it," Blade concluded as he looked up into the crimson sky.

"Do you think they've made it to the Headquarters yet?" Tuff asked.

"Well, there's only one way to find out…" Joe answered with a rub of his nose. He walked into the foreboding woodlands, the others following in close pursuit…

"You're the ninja who betrayed the star warriors," Meta-Knight said softy, his sword in hand. Biospark responded with a laugh, which surprised him and Kirby.

"You dare to label me a traitor? Preposterous!" Biospark hissed. "If anything _you're_ the traitor! Your hands are stained with the blood of comrades no less than mine are! Yet you disguise your treachery behind a veil of righteousness! I think even you are blinded by your own heroism!"

Kirby stood baffled by the cryptic accusations the ninja made against his mentor. Meta-Knight's eyes flared up with rage.

"You talk nonsense!" the old knight spoke, his voice just a pitch higher than before.

"Perhaps I do," Biospark's eyes glowed brightly in sadistic pleasure. "But you can't disguise your own essence forever. Soon everyone you ever cared for will see you for what you really are. Unfortunately it will be over your prone carcass!" With those words the ninja dashed forward, katana in hand. Meta-Knight too charged forward. With a clang the swords clashed between them.

Kirby watched the exchange with a mixture of confusion and worry. 

"King Dedede?!" Tiff cried. "How… how could he do something like this?!"

"For…forgive him…" Escargoon coughed. Tiff picked up one of the other overturned chairs and placed it back in upright position. Grabbing onto Escargoon's arm, she gently helped him to sit on the chair. "M…Meta-Knight… he was…he was …right.."

"What do you mean?" Tiff asked tenderly. She looked around the room for a first aid kit. Finally finding one in one of the broken cabinets the young girl pulled it out and started cleaning and bandaging the snail's numerous injuries.

"Night…Nightmare Enterprises …be…betrayed him… betrayed us all…" Escargoon placed his hands on the seat to steady himself. "The…King created more…of the Behemoth Serum… the NME Exec… came himself…to take the serum. But…once …once he got it… he took one of the syringes… and stabbed Dedede with it!"

"What!?" Tiff could remember how little it took to influence Meta-Knight. "How much was injected?"

"The entire syringe…"

Sword, Blade and the others managed to make their way through the deranged forest with relative ease. The huge fortress was apparently made of stone. Despite its massive size the only windows were located at the very top, most likely for the flying monsters. They had emerged from the forest near the front-western side of the fortress. There were two large, lizard-like guards standing before the grand entrance, but otherwise the fortress appeared to be unoccupied.

"Lord Meta-Knight and Kirby must have drawn their fire!" Sword said, grinning underneath his mask. "I knew they could do it!"

"I wouldn't get too excited," Joe said as he led the group towards the back of the fortress. "I doubt every monster in the entire fortress left to chase them. We should keep an eye out to make sure there are no monsters here guarding the headquarters." The others nodded in understanding. Suddenly Joe stopped and looked up. The rest of the group followed his gaze and found an air vent a few feet above them.

"Time for us to split up," Blade said as Lalala floated above them to pull the screen off from the vent. The young knight picked up Tuff and pushed him up so that the child could climb in. Afterwards Blade jumped up, grabbing onto the ledge and pulling himself up.

"You guys gotta make sure you make it to the device incase we fail!" Lololo called to them.

Tuff turned and looked down at Lololo, Joe and Sword, "None of us are gonna fail!" the young boy declared, his arrogance once again flaring up. "Whoever makes it to device first gets a pizza party when we get back!" With that said he turned around and ran into the vent, Sword and Lalala following.

Joe smiled at Tuff's words, then looked to his current companions. "C'mon you guys, lets go find the secret passage."

Kirby could only watch as his teacher clashed swords with his treacherous adversary. The ninja dodged the assault and threw a handful of shurikens, which Meta-Knight dodged. 

"No! Stay back!" Meta-Knight ordered as Kirby stepped forward to help. The little creampuff stopped in his tracks. The veteran didn't want to risk Kirby getting injured in this heated battle. 

_I don't have time for this! We still have to get to the castle and draw their fire!_

He flapped his wings vigorously, the currents of wind causing Biospark to stagger. Meta-Knight then charged forward, his sword before him with the intent to impale his enemy on the blade. At the last moment Biospark strafed aside and sent the blunt of his blade into the side of his head. Meta-Knight crashed heavily on the floor. Before the old soldier could surmise a counter-attack, the ninja dashed forward with his blade in hand.

Meta-Knight had no time to react as the ninja dashed forward.

Suddenly, a flash of light emitted between the fallen soldier and the charging ninja. The light formed into a figure, who blocked the enemy's assault with surprising ease. The figure was cloaked in crimson, his glowing eyes the only thing visible beneath the cloth. He looked so familiar, yet Meta-Knight couldn't put his finger on it.

"Ninjaschool!" Kirby cried as he gestured to the figure.

The form looked over to the little creampuff, his eyes glowing gently, "Hey Kirbster! Glad you could remember me! But call me Dagger from now on, ok?"

Meta-Knight was confused at Kirby's statement at first, then realization hit him like a blow. His savior was the young warrior from ninja school…

Joe felt along the eastern side of the wall while Lololo and Sword kept an eye on the entrance to make sure the guards weren't aware of their presence.

"I know it's here somewhere…" Joe mumbled to himself. Suddenly, his hand grabbed onto one of the stones and it pulled down. The wall he leaned against pushed forward and he fell through with a yelp. Upon hearing the yell and a thump, Sword and Lololo ran over to see their comrade sprawled out face down on the floor. Grumbling a few words not meant for young ears, Joe pushed himself onto his feet and sheepishly glanced at his companions. "I found the secret passage…"

Sword chuckled, "Ah, we noticed."

Lololo looked into the passage, which looked like a very, very long hallway, "Um…do you know where this passage leads to?"

The young fighter rubbed his nose, "Well, not really… I've only seen monsters go in and out, I've never actually used it myself…" A sweat drop formed on the brows of his teammates, "What?! It's an entrance to the fortress, isn't it? I don't think they would make a secret passage that led one to an insignificant part of the headquarters!"

"Well, we'll never know until we look," Sword concluded as he walked into the passageway. Joe and Lololo looked at each other before following…

Dagger deflected another blow from the elder ninja and jumped back. Meta-Knight had not known the young student long, but from what he had previously seen the ninja was extremely inexperienced. He must have studied and applied himself much harder since then. Dagger's improvement was definitely admirable.

Biospark growled as rage threatened to overcome the usually steel-nerved warrior. He was not to be bested by some brat! The young ninja looked over to Kirby and Meta-Knight. "Go! Get out of here and do your thing! I've got this guy covered!"

Kirby smiled brightly. The little puffball felt proud of his friend for his obvious increase of skill.

Meta-Knight's eyes flickered. "How did you know we were here to begin with?"

Biospark hurled a line of shuriken at his current threat. Dagger strafed out of the way and retaliated with a handful of shurikens of his own. "My whole ninja clan is here. They're currently fighting with the monsters as we speak. Drove them out of Dedede's castle they did. I stayed behind incase there were any monsters that we missed. That's when I saw you guys. I decided to follow you incase you needed any help."

"That would explain why there were no monsters in Dedede's castle…" Meta-Knight said softly. "Are there any monsters left in the fortress?"

Biospark dashed forward and clashed his katana with Dagger's.

"I really don't know," Dagger answered. Meta-Knight glanced over to his young disciple, worry flickering in his golden eyes.

"We must get there as soon as possible, just in case!" the old knight determined.

"Be careful," Dagger warned, "There's one monster that's been giving my comrades a hard time. They were able to drive it out of the castle as well, but I'm not sure where it is right now."

"Are you sure you can handle him?" Meta-Knight asked.

"I got it covered!" the young ninja declared, further angering his adversary.

"I'm not that easy to cover, you little runt!" Biospark roared, his reason clouded by rage.

"Alright! Kirby, lets go!" the old veteran ran over to Kirby and picked him up. Casting one last glance at the dueling ninjas, Meta-Knight once again took to the skies.

"Buh-bye!" Kirby mewled as he was carried away…

Escargoon's statement sent a cold chill through the young girl. Barely any of the Behemoth Serum had been ejected into Meta-Knight and yet it still took effect. If only a small amount could do so much, the thought of the effects of an entire syringe…

She couldn't even imagine the type of monster that would create.

"Tiff… do… do you have any of the antidote left…?" Escargoon asked.

Tiff couldn't answer, she could only shake her head. Escargoon hadn't made much of the antidote to begin with, and she had used it all on Meta-Knight, she had never imagined something like this happening to someone else… "I… I could make some more, if you give me the formula…"

Escargoon shook his head, "No…we …we don't have …enough time… his majesty must… must be stopped…now…" He pulled himself out of the chair, using it for support. "You must… take me to him…"

"What?!" Tiff cried, taking hold of his arm again. "You can't go anywhere in this condition! Besides, we don't even know where he is!"

"He…left with… the other monsters… using the Monster… Teleportation Device…" Escargoon stepped forward. Tiff pushed him back into the chair.

"You can't go like this!"

"Are you… going to help me or not?!" Escargoon snapped.

Tiff sighed in frustration, seeing that the injured snail's resolve was not to be swayed. "Alright."

Blade, Lalala and Tuff walked through the air vents. The vents were small, but fortunately just large enough for all three to walk through. The trio were beyond lost, and could only hope they were heading in the right direction.

"Wait a sec!" Tuff suddenly said as he tilted his head. The other two stopped in their tracks. "Did you hear that?"

There was a long pause. Blade's hand strayed to his hilt.

"What is it?" Lalala whispered.

"Maybe it was nothing…" Tuff finally concluded. "But I could have sworn I heard something…" Blade looked down and noticed that their shadows were in front of them. That meant that the light source came from behind; that was strange because the only light source the air vent provided were the outlets to the other rooms. Blade turned around to see what was causing that light source.

The light source was a huge fireball coming their direction.

The secret passage was merely a hallway that never seemed to end. It continued to twist left, then right, then left again, but never appeared to end. Fortunately there were no alternative routes provided, so the ragtag group could at the very least find comfort in the fact that they must be going in the right direction.

The hallway was massive in size, most likely it was supposed to fit even the largest of Nightmare's monsters. Sword looked up and mentally measured the diameter of the hallway - it was at least ten by seven or so feet. He would hate to see a monster large enough to fit those measurements.

Suddenly, two figures could be seen up ahead. Before anyone in the group had a chance to identify them they had already been seen. There wasn't exactly any place to hide.

"Remember," Joe whispered to his two companions, "I'm still supposed to be one of them. So I'm gonna pretend you're my prisoners and they should let us right through."

Sword and Lololo nodded in understanding.

One figure's entire body glowed a bright golden. He looked like a small version of the sun. The other was a dark blue creature in the shape of a crescent moon.

"Halt! Who goes there?" The bright golden one asked.

"It's me, Knuckle Joe!" the young fighter snapped. "I gots me some prisoners for the great Nightmare!"

The two monsters glared at the two prisoners. Lololo swallowed a whimper and shifted uncomfortably.

"Haven't you noticed that there is a battle going on just outside our doors?!" The moon-shaped creature inquired, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"There's a war being fought outside?" Sword asked, his mask hiding his smile.

_Meta-Knight and Kirby must be making one hell of a scene!_

Joe punched Sword in the back of the head, breaking his train of thought. "Don't speak unless spoken to, prisoner!" He then glowered at the two monsters. "If there's a battle going on just outside our doors, then why aren't you two participating in it?!"

The two creatures looked at each other. Joe spat, "Cowards! If you get out there now I won't report your cowardice to the master!"

"Y-yes sir!" The sun-shaped monster stammered. "Right away!" The duo ran the way Joe and the others had come. After they were long past hearing range, Joe placed one hand gently on Sword's shoulder.

"Sorry, man," Joe said tenderly. "I had to put on a show to make sure they fell for it. Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm ok," Sword said while rubbing the back of his head. "You did a good job at convincing…"

"Yah," Lololo nodded, "You almost had me convinced!"

Joe laughed softly. "Guess I shoulda took up actin'!"

Sword nodded, "Yeah. Maybe you could do that after the war." That statement brought a somber look to the young fighter.

"We need to get going," Joe said softly. "We don't have time to waste.

Meta-Knight approached the fortress, there was not much more ground left to cover. Kirby hugged his mentor, gazing down at the wretched trees that twisted upwards.

Dagger and his clan's appearance had been a godsend.

Maybe, just maybe, despite the setbacks their plan might actually work.

_Maybe this war really will end._

Suddenly, the old veteran's train of thought was broken when a huge monster rose from the forest. Meta-Knight had to swerve to avoid collision. The old soldier's eyes brightened as he gazed upon the brute that stood before them.

The huge, slathering beast was covered in onyx scales. Large, bat-like wings stretched behind the back of the creature. Its eyes glowed a deep crimson that matched the bloodied skies. The monster landed and stood before the fortress like a giant guardian.

_What kind of creature is that?!_

Meta-Knight landed with semi-grace and placed Kirby on the ground. He then drew his sword. There was no way the two were going to be able to pass the creature without a fight. Kirby jumped back as his elder charged forward, sword in hand. The creature swung a massive claw, which by sheer mass Meta-Knight was unable to dodge. Upon collision, a huge crack resounded and Meta-Knight flew back into one of the claw-like trees.

"Medanigh!" Kirby cried as the only living star warrior other than himself fell forward and landed facedown. Meta-Knight slowly pushed himself onto his feet, his wings drooping alongside him. His mask had a diagonal crack from right above his left eye across his face, almost splitting the object completely in half.

The huge creature opened its jaws and sent a huge blast of fire. The old soldier's eyes widened in horror, the memory of his first battle with Wolfwrath replaying in his mind. In his mind's eye he could see the fire approaching, almost feel the fiery mass engulf him. However this time, the fire didn't connect. Instead, it strayed off its path…right into Kirby's vacuum-like maw. After absorbing the stream of fire, the little star warrior jumped into the air and transformed into "Fire Kirby."

The young disciple returned the fiery blast with one of his own, and the heat melted the scales on the creature's chest. With a horrific roar, the monster swung its claw through the flames and sent Kirby skidding back into a tree.

"Kirby!" Meta-Knight cried, shaking himself from his mental imagery. His eyes flared up and the old soldier charged forward. The monster breathed fire at the veteran, but before the flames could connect Meta-Knight's wings propelled him up into the persimmon skies. Kirby shook his head and slowly climbed onto his feet, using the gnarled tree for support. 

Meta-Knight dived down and stabbed his sword into the melted scales of the large creature. However the scales, despite their previous damage, were still too strong for the sword to cut through. Suddenly, a huge blow landed on the top of his head and sent Meta-Knight crashing to the tainted floor. His dimly glowing sword dropped from numbed fingers…

The monster raised one foot to put an end to the old star warrior when a blast of fire deterred him. As the beast staggered back, Kirby ran to Meta-Knight's side and dragged him away.

"Medanigh…?" Kirby mewled, gently giving his elder a shake. The old knight's eyes were as dim as his sword. "Medanigh..! Medanigh!"

The creature finally regained its composure and gave an earth-shattering roar. Kirby ran forward and spewed a line of fire. The monster blocked the attack with one of its massive wings and ripped one of the decayed trees from the ground. It raised the tree up over its head before hurling the thing at his young adversary. Kirby grabbed Meta-Knight and jumped out of the way. He then closed his eyes and began charging up. The monster lunged forward. Right as the beast was about to connect Kirby's entire body lit up. As fire engulfed the little star warrior, he dashed forward and slammed into the creature's massive chest, which was already damaged by his previous fire attack. The scales shattered and the monster reared back with a cry of agony.

Meta-Knight shakily pushed himself up, having watched the entire exchange. "K…Kirby…!" 

The little puffball fell limply to the ground, the attack spending his strength.

The beast swayed painfully before glowering down at the exhausted Kirby. It opened its maw, fire gathering within.

Meta-Knight tried to will himself to move, but his body wouldn't comply fast enough. "K…Kirby…! …No!" He dug his fingers into the contaminated dirt and closed his eyes tightly. "No…!"

Kirby could only watch, his body lacking the strength to respond.

The monster's eyes glowed brightly, but before the fire could erupt a small figure jumped out of nowhere and latched onto its neck. The monster staggered, the fire missing its target. Meta-Knight finally managed to climb onto his feet and identify the figure - Escargoon?!!

"Escargoon! Be careful!" Tiff cried, making her way through the trees and onto the scene. Her eyes widened as her gaze rested on the exhausted Kirby. "Kirby!" She ran to his side and gently picked up the little creampuff.

"Tiff…!" Kirby mewled happily.

"Tiff? Escargoon?" Meta-Knight exclaimed. "What are you doing here?!"

"I found Escargoon at the castle," Tiff answered. "That monster you're fighting is King Dedede!"

"What?!" Meta-Knight's eyes widened.

"No time for talk!" Escargoon roared, holding onto the thrashing beast with waning strength. "You've got… to stop him… Meta-Knight! Please!" The old soldier hesitated. Despite his discontent with the tyrant he didn't necessarily wish death upon him. "Do it, Meta-Knight! I can't…hold him much longer…!"

The old star warrior nodded solemnly and picked up his sword. After that he dashed forward and impaled his sword through the monster's chest - through the ravaged scales. The monster roared as blood sprayed from the gaping wound. Meta-Knight pulled the sword out and staggered back. The beast hurled Escargoon off and collapsed forward onto the ground with an earth-shattering crash.

Escargoon slammed heavily into the ground…and didn't get back up.

"Escargoon!" Tiff cried as she and Meta-Knight raced to his side. Kirby squirmed out of her grasp.

"Heh…you were right…Meta-Knight…" Escargoon murmured. "We…shoulda listened…to…you…"

"That doesn't matter now," Meta-Knight said softly.

"Don't…be mad…at the King…" Escargoon voice began to fade into a whisper. "Despite…his selfishness…he really did…have good…intentions… he allied…with Nightmare…to protect… the castle…and.. the… village…"

"I understand," the old knight responded. "Thank you, Escargoon. You saved us both."

"Heh…I always…wanted… to… ..be… …a …….hero…" Escargoon breathed as his eyes closed.

"Es…Escargoon?" Tiff cried. "Escargoon!"

There was no response.

"You are a hero…" Meta-Knight said as he lowered his head.

Kirby mewled softly and hugged Tiff, who returned his embrace. The three stood in silence when the ground abruptly began to shake.

Meta-Knight raised his head, "What was that?" Before he or the others could evaluate, the ground gave way under them. With a strangled cry the three fell into the dark chasm below…

__

_Author's Notes: This chapter was extremely long. It was difficult trying to remember who was doing what at what time - so many things were going on it was hard to keep track. LoL. I hope it wasn't difficult for you to follow. I was going to cut it off earlier, but I wanted to end this chapter with MK, Kirby and Tiff falling into the chasm. This chapter is considerably darker than the others, and this story may end up having to be pushed up to R. (Right now I think it's still PG-13, but if any of you think it should be pushed up to R just tell me and I'll do it.) I hope you enjoyed this chapter, that it wasn't too long and that it managed to maintain your interest despite of all the chaos. _


	9. Chapter 9

Shades of Grey - Chapter 9

Darkness.

Everything was darkness.

A nightmare that ceased to end.

Meta-Knight, Tiff and Kirby plummeted through the emptiness. Debris descended with them. Meta-Knight frantically looked around for the other two, his own glowing eyes providing the only light source. He couldn't see the bottom or walls of the chasm, and his wings were not strong enough to carry the combined weight of himself, Tiff and Kirby. Leaving them behind was out of the question. 

He especially needed to find Kirby. If Kirby could puff up, it would decrease the weight Meta-Knight would have to carry and at the very least he could glide to the bottom of the chasm as opposed to hitting it at full speed.

After what felt like an eternity, he found Kirby within the descending debris. Grabbing onto him, Meta-Knight did a quick examination - Kirby had been knocked unconscious. 

"Kirby!" the elder star warrior cried. "Kirby! Wake up! You've got to puff up! Kirby! _Kirby_!!!" There was no response. The young star warrior also no longer possessed his fire ability, as he must have lost it sometime during the descent. Fury threatened to overwhelm the old knight. Rage at his own helplessness. After all this, after all they went through, death at the bottom of this underground hellhole was not the proper end!

"Kirby! You've got to wake up!"

Meta-Knight's entire life had revolved around war.

_Thousands of years of war._

Finally the end was so close the old soldier could see it.

_"KIRBY!!!"_

Meta-Knight had never expected to survive the war, still didn't. The only wish the veteran had was that at least in his final moments he could have the comfort of knowing that he did his best.

That the children would survive.

That the war would finally end, even if he wasn't alive to see it.

But to die at the pit of this wasteland…

…If only he could still inhale…

Suddenly he was pulled from his thoughts by a gentle touch on his shoulder. Meta-Knight turned around to see Tiff. She too had been injured during the descent, as she had an enormous bruise on the side of her face. Hair blowing back in the wind, her eyes were barely opened and she was barely conscious. "You…can do it…Meta-Knight…"

At first her words baffled him. Suddenly, as if her words had served as a trigger, he remembered their conversation just the night before. "Tiff…you know why I can't…it's impossible for me…"

"If… if anyone… can do…the ..impossible…" Tiff murmured, her voice weakening. "…I know you can…" Her eyes closed and her grip loosened.

"Tiff!" Meta-Knight cried, but his cries fell on deaf ears. Tiff had lost consciousness. The veteran's eyes shut tightly.

In the darkness he could still not see the bottom of this massive pit.

But they could not fall forever.

How many years had it been?

How many years had passed since his first battle with Wolfwrath?

How long had it been since he lost his inhale capabilities?

He couldn't remember, as he had long ago lost track of time.

After so long…there was no possibility that he could have regained any of his previous abilities…

…Or was there?

_If anyone can do the impossible…I know you can…_

He had to try.

With a quick motion he removed the mask. With the object still in hand, he wrapped one arm around Tiff and the other around Kirby, making sure both were secured. Meta-Knight closed his eyes tightly, trying to remember…

Inhaling was much like blowing into a balloon. It took a bit of strength, but eventually the pressure would force the balloon to expand and it would become easier. He could feel his skin stretch as his body began to distend slowly. The old veteran felt his skin tightened, as it was no longer used to the demands currently bestowed upon it. Meta-Knight nearly let out his breath from the pain. It wasn't that he unaccustomed to pain, but this was of a completely different kind. Despite the torture he continued inhaling until he could no longer. Afterwards he clenched his teeth shut, holding his breath. The old veteran spread his wings out, using them like a parachute. He could feel that their fall had slowed dramatically, and he tried with all his will to hold his breath as long as possible. Numbness began to course through him, starting in the center and working throughout his limbs and out to the fingers that held his mask in a white-knuckled clutch. Stars danced before his closed eyes and he continued to hold Tiff and Kirby with a shaky grasp.

Seconds felt like hours.

Minutes like days.

Suddenly he felt solid ground beneath his feet. Letting out his breath with a tremendous heave, he ungracefully dropped Kirby and Tiff and fell forward. Breaths came in short gasps as the dark void of unconsciousness finally overtook him…

Tuff and Blade ran as fast as their feet could carry, Lalala flying just before them. The fireball was right on their heels. They could hear the clanging of their own feet on the hollow floor of the air vent but didn't care about the noise they made. Escaping the blistering heat of the fireball was more important. Finally the group came across an intersection. Lalala turned left and the others followed suit. The fireball continued going straight ahead. Upon its passing, Tuff stuck his head out and watched as the fire sped further down the air vents, the bright orangish glow illuminating the way. After a moment Tuff let out a sigh of relief and pressed his back against the wall.

"Finally we're safe…" Tuff breathed as he slid down to a sitting position.

"I wouldn't feel too comfortable yet," Blade warned. Lalala landed softly next to Tuff and looked up at the hardened warrior. "Someone sent that fire after us-"

Before Blade could continue his statement a growl echoed through the vents. Lalala turned to look back towards the intersection but instead found herself looking into the glowing sapphire eyes of Wolfwrath…

After the laborious journey Joe, Lololo and Sword's patience and endurance finally bared fruit as they neared the end of the hallway. The three couldn't imagine what would possess N.M.E. to build a secret passageway so long. More than once the group openly questioned whether or not the hallway had an end at all. That perhaps the hallway twisted and turned for eternity. Now their questions were answered, and to their favor! The hallway opened to a huge chamber. Besides the opening the three entered through there appeared to be no other exits.

"This doesn't look like the inside of a fortress…" Lololo concluded. The three stepped in and examined their current surroundings. The room was completely empty except for a pedestal that stood in the center. Sitting upon the pedestal was a small, glowing object.

Joe walked over to the glowing object and examined it. Suddenly a gasp escaped him.

"What's wrong?" Sword asked, his hand straying to the hilt of his weapon.

"This…" Joe breathed as he picked up the object and held it before them. "…Is the star rod!"

_The entity of evil, the source of all pain stood before Meta-Knight. Its glaring crimson eyes reminded him of the tainted clouds that swarmed around the wretched keep._

The horrid creature's lips stretched into a grin, exposing sharp and yellowed teeth. This monster was Meta-Knight's source of life and death, love and hate, serenity and pain. The demon was his beginning, and likely his end. Meta-Knight closed his eyes tightly. He could feel the wretch's voice in his mind.

**You dare to shut out your own essence?!**

You are a monster.

No less a monster then I am.

No less a monster than your brethren.

The brethren that you've slaughtered!?

Tremors coursed through his wings. Meta-Knight felt his lips move, his own warm breath held against his face by the confines of his mask. But no sound would come.

**You so cherish the few friends you've managed to maintain.**

They don't know you.

They don't know the monster they've let slip within their ranks.

Meta-Knight clutched his head with his hands.

Your words mean nothing!

**Fighting against your own making is futile.**

I'm not that way.

**When your friends see the monster you are...**

I've never been that way!

**They will abandon you without a second thought.**

I'm not a monster!

****

"Medanigh!"

Like the whisper of a dream the auditory torture ceased. The entity faded away, and he realized that he was laying face-down on a dirt floor. Pushing himself into a sitting position, Meta-Knight turned to see the little pink puffball to whom the voice belonged. Right next to the little star warrior was Tiff, who was kneeling over Meta-Knight with a look of concern.

"Kirby…Tiff…" Meta-Knight sighed as he pushed himself onto his feet. It was then he noticed the worried expressions on the their faces convert to looks of surprise. _That's odd, what would they have to be surprised about_…

A gasp of horror emanated from the old soldier as realization struck him like a physical blow. His hands flew to his face, only serving to conform his affirmation. Quickly his wings wrapped around him, shielding him from the prying eyes of the children. Meta-Knight backed away with a frightened cry; He had to find the mask before he further scarred the children with his hideous visage!

With his wings still wrapped around him, he quickly felt along the ground for his mask.

"Meta-Knight!" Tiff's voice fell deaf to his ears. All he cared about was finding the mask. The scars represented his failure, his shame, his inabilities. He couldn't bare the thought of ones as young and innocent as they laying eyes on something so ghastly, so ravaged…

"Medanigh!" The soldier felt a tug on his wings, stopping him from his blind foraging. The appendages had been worn during the descent and there wasn't enough strength in them to hold. Meta-Knight stiffened as Kirby pushed his wings aside and looked upon him.

Time stood still. In his mind's eye, the old veteran could see his young disciple mewling in disgust and running away. The mere thought sent a bolt of chill through the old knight. Despite his knowledge that emotions can prove to be a weakness, he loved Kirby and the thought of instilling fear into the little puffball horrified him worse than his own visage. But Kirby didn't run away. Suddenly breaking into a wide smile, the little cream puff lunged forward and hugged his elder with surprising eagerness. This was the last reaction Meta-Knight expected and could only stand there in stunned silence.

Tiff watched the whole exchange with a mixture of surprise and empathy. She remembered the soft and sorrowful tone of his voice when he explain how he had acquired the scars. Come to think of it, looking upon his features, she could see where he had been burned… but they weren't nearly as severe as he made them out to be. In fact, due to his dark complexion, had she not known to look for them she wouldn't have noticed them at all. If anything he looked kind of cute. His eyes glowed gently and his features were soft. Nevertheless she and Kirby had apparently found a tender part of his psyche, a wound that had failed to heal. She had a feeling that his internal scars were much more severe then his physical counterparts had ever been. Finding his mask on the floor, Tiff picked it up and walked over to the two. Kneeling down she gently laid her hand on top of Meta-Knight's head. "Shh, it's ok. Look, I have your mask." 

__

He looked up at her, almost appearing to see through her. "I don't… Kirby…"

Tiff smiled tenderly. "Kirby hasn't even noticed your scars. You know what? He wouldn't even care if he did. In fact, I think Kirby just truly realized that you and he are the same."

Meta-Knight looked back down at the little puff ball. Kirby on some level may have suspected that there was some link between himself and his elder. However seeing him without the concealing mask did more than just confirm the previously held belief. It fulfilled Kirby's subconscious yearning for belonging - the psychological need to have a beginning from which they came, an answer to their many developing questions. Like when a chick is born, the first thought that enters the creature's mind upon seeing the world is "where's my parent?" The answer had always been the first creature it lays eyes upon. Until that moment Kirby had never laid eyes upon anyone to whom could be labeled as such. Upon seeing Meta-Knight's visage, Kirby truly realized that they really were the same - that Meta-Knight was not only a father figure, but as close as Kirby will probably ever have to a real, biological father. The little star warrior could look upon his elder and have an idea as to what he will grow up to be. There were so many questions that Kirby could not translate into words, but for that moment all he cared about was that he was no longer alone. With that newfound understanding, the little creampuff nuzzled his newfound father, cooing with content.

Meta-Knight, to a point, finally understood Kirby's previous reaction. However he couldn't dispel the fog of terror that clouded him whenever his mask was off and continued to stand frozen. Tiff handed the damaged-yet-wearable object to him, which he quickly took and slipped on. Kirby let go and stepped back. Anxiety finally dissipated, only to be replaced by an overwhelming sense of chagrin. He had made a complete fool of himself in front of both Kirby and Tiff. Attempting to gather up what was left of his dignity, Meta-Knight folded his wings against his back and looked around the chasm.

The cavity was massive in size, as Meta-Knight couldn't even see the ceiling. While it was still dark, there were a few torches lined up against the walls that provided a minimal amount of light. Despite the lack of a ceiling, there was a wall on all sides except for one. With a small cough, Meta-Knight turned to face them. "This appears to be the only way out…"

Tiff watched him, understanding his apparent remorse. While she didn't think there was anything he should feel ashamed of, she could empathize with the situation. He was supposed to be a steel-nerved soldier, as the war would not allow for less. Meta-Knight was one of very few weaknesses, so for she and Kirby to stumble upon one of his deepest vulnerabilities must have been disgraceful to him. Tiff wanted to offer a few words of comfort, but there was none that she could think of that would suffice. So instead she too looked around. "Looks like we fell into some kind of secret chamber…"

Meta-Knight nodded. "I wonder if this is the secret passageway that Joe previously spoke of?"

"I don't know…" Tiff looked up. "I don't think this leads to the headquarters." she shrugged her thin shoulders. "We might as well go and find out. There doesn't seem to be any other options…"

Upon laying eyes on Wolfwrath, Lalala shrieked in terror and flew behind Blade.

The young soldier steadied his sword and glanced over his shoulder to the frightened creature floating behind him, "Wolfwrath lives only through the device. Tuff and I will hold him, you go. Find the device, and destroy it."

Lalala swallowed nervously. Never had such pressure been bestowed upon her. How she wished her brother was here. Not that he was more qualified, but at least she would not have been given this mission alone. Nonetheless she nodded in understanding, turned around and flew down the air vent.

Upon watching Lalala's departure, Blade looked over to Tuff, "Are you ready?"

Wolfwrath's eyes glowed brightly as he watched the exeunt of the creature who possessed only a minute source of heat. The heat levels of the two who stood before him were much higher, indicating that they would make better prey.

Tuff returned Blade's look, while still keeping an eye on their adversary. Despite the fear that threatened to overwhelm the boy, there was also a tinge of excitement. Finally he would have the chance to prove himself. "Ready!"

"What is a star rod?" Lololo asked, looking upon the glowing staff in awe.

"When I was little, my mom used to tell me stories about the war," Joe explained. His hand hovered over the gleaming object. "She said that there was some kind of legendary 'star rod' that was supposed to mark the end of NME. She also said that, in order to protect himself, Nightmare himself attempted to locate and destroy the rod. He succeeded in finding it, but couldn't destroy it. So he had hid it somewhere, only trusting his greatest monsters to the knowledge of its location. I never believed it, I didn't believe in legends…still wouldn't, if the star rod itself wasn't sitting here before me."

"What else did the legend say?" Sword asked as Joe gingerly picked up the small glowing object. The illumination immediately died upon the fighter's hand.

"It also said that only a star warrior could wield it…" Joe answered. The star rod now looked no greater than a decorative stick. "…That only a star warrior could call upon its true power."

"Then we need to get this to Meta-Knight and fast!" Sword concluded. Lololo and Sword nodded in resolute and with that concluded the three ran out of the secret passageway as fast as their feet could carry them…

Meta-Knight, Tiff and Kirby treaded silently down the vast cave.

With the commotion over and nothing but silence in the air, Tiff's mind began to wander…

She could still hear Escargoon's hideous wail.

Could still feel his thick blood on her hands…

Tiff placed one hand over her mouth as her stomach turned painfully. Shaking her head, the young girl tried desperately to clear her thoughts.

_Think of something else…anything else…_ Tiff could feel her head throbbing. Apparently she must have injured herself during the fall. Placing one hand on the side of her face, she could feel a large bruise. With a shudder of pain she tried to deter her thoughts once again, and listened intently to the pattering of her feet on the soft soil. Tiff could hear the small squishes, as the soil was moist.

Squish…

Squish…

Squish…

She could smell the musky scent of the cave…

Yet despite the squishes and the scents she couldn't rid herself of Escargoon's horrendous wails.

The cries that would be Escargoon's last.

He would never smile again.

He would never laugh again, cry again.

What was his mother going to do when…

…When she finds out that he was never going to send her another letter?

When she finds out that he was never coming home again.

When she finds out that her son was dead?

_Escargoon was dead._

King Dedede was dead.

She was never going to see them again.

_Yet she could still feel the snail's blood on her hands._

Abruptly breaking away from the two, Tiff ran a few feet away as her stomach heaved. Grabbing onto one of the few stalagmites that littered the walkway, she started vomiting. There was little in her stomach to begin with, so it wasn't much more than dry heaves. Yet she couldn't stop.

Tiff suddenly felt a soft touch on her back. Coughing, she glanced over to see Meta-Knight gingerly rubbing circles into her back, his eyes glowing gently with understanding. Finally her hacking eased, and the girl could feel her cheeks heat up with abashment.

Thousands of battles Meta-Knight fought.

_Thousands of deaths he had witnessed._

Yet she was the one heaving.

"I'm sor…"

"Don't be," Meta-Knight said tenderly. "This kind of reaction is expected."

"But…you and Kirby have seen much worse and yet…"

"Don't compare yourself to us," the veteran spoke sternly. "We were created for war. You were not."

A small smile tugged at Tiff's lips. "I… guess that makes us even now?"

"Ah, so it does," Meta-Knight's eyes flickered with amusement. They had both witnessed each other in a vulnerable moment. It was a small comfort, as if the two scenarios counterbalanced each other, similar to a "I won't say anything if you don't" type of situation. The old star warrior glanced over at Kirby, who watched the scene with confusion. "Hm, the little one here could blackmail us both."

"I don't think he's going to tell anybody," Tiff's smile widened slightly, although no laugh could come.

Meta-Knight's eyes brightened, yet he too did not laugh. "Are you feeling ok now?" His voice was tinged with true concern.

Tiff replied with a nod, ignoring the numbness that remained in the pit of her stomach. "Yeah…lets go."

Lalala flew aimlessly through the air vents. Finally finding an opening to a room, Lalala pushed the latch open and slipped through. She found herself floating in what appeared to be the armory. Landing softly on the ground, the little pink creampuff pushed the door open and watched as a large beetle-type creature walked down a large hallway.

It was Bugsy, the monster that Kirby fought not long after he had first landed in Cappytown. He was obviously a revived monster. Lalala figured that since he was a resurrected beast that he would know the location of the device. Not having any better ideas, she ultimately decided to follow him.

Blade slammed heavily against the walls of the air vent from the force of Wolfwrath's massive claws, a loud bang resonating throughout. Tuff charged forward and stabbed his dagger into the side of the beast. Wolfwrath howled and hurled Tuff into Blade. The two slammed into the wall again. A large crack sounded, and the duo fell through and into a large cafeteria. Landing heavily on the ground, Blade looked up to see a horde of monsters swarming around them.

Tuff too noticed the mob, "Oh no…"

Joe, Lololo and Sword ran out of the secret passage and around the side of the keep itself. The two guards that stood before the door before were no longer there. The forest that surrounded the headquarters appeared to have suffered some grand scale attack. While the forest had already looked gnarled before, it now looked completely ravaged. Hoping that they could find Meta-Knight and Kirby, the three followed the trail.

After a dozen minutes of searching, the trio stumbled upon a ghastly sight.

A gaping hole was opened in the center of a clearing. Nearby a huge monster laid sprawled on the floor, blood still trickling from a mortal breast wound. Laying a few feet away was the husk of Escargoon. Joe knelt down and felt the snail's pulse. After a moment he silently shook his head. 

Lololo paled visibly as frantic thoughts coursed through his young mind. 

__

What happened?! 

Where were the others?! 

What if Lalala was laying somewhere like this? 

What if she was dead? 

_What if they were all dead?!_

The little creature was startled from his thoughts by a gentle hand on the top of his head.

"Don't worry. I'm sure everyone else is alright," Sword said tenderly. He could read the look of apprehension on the little one's face. It mirrored his own questions, his own worry for Blade, Meta-Knight and the others.

Joe looked over the massive chasm, "I wonder what's down there?"

"I don't know," Sword answered as he stabbed his sword into the wall of the hole and used it to climb down. "But I'm willing to bet Meta-Knight and Kirby are down there."

Nodding with the same resolution, Joe took hold of the ledge and climbed down. Lololo floated down between him and Sword…

As the trio continued to walk silently through the massive cave, Meta-Knight wrapped his wings around him as a sudden chill began to course through his veins. He began to have a feeling of dread, a numbing sensation that they were walking towards something horrendous. His mind began a fierce mantra: 

Leave now. 

Leave now. 

Leave now. 

Never come back…

The old veteran shook his head vigorously. Not even in his thoughts was Meta-Knight so cowardly, it was not within his character. Someone, something was playing with his mind, twisting his thoughts and playing on his anxieties. That also could have explained the strange dream he had earlier. With that in mind, he was beginning to wonder if the cave they fell into was some kind of secret underground roost. Despite his reigning leadership over NME, Nightmare himself was rarely seen and did not live in the Headquarters. Perhaps…this cave was the secret domain of the vile and heinous monster overlord.

Meta-Knight's suspicions were confirmed when the walls of the cave opened up into a huge chamber. Within the chamber stood the massive hellion, its form cloaked in darkness. The only visible part of the demon's body were his burning crimson eyes, which brightened with sadistic glee as the prey walked into his domain - and to their apparent doom…

_Author's Notes: It was a little bit hard trying to keep up with each group, and timing everything so that it all happens in the right sequence (which will be especially important for the next chapter.) However I think everything went well. This chapter is also dark, as will the next one. I think the next chapter will be the last, (however it will probably be massive - maybe even more so then Chapter 8.) as I plan to have everything fall into place. It was also difficult trying to get into the right state of mind while writing Tiff's vomit scene and MK's unmasked scene. I was trying to convey Tiff's innocence and horror of her exposure to the war, and MK's anxiety of being unmasked. I've been trying to link the anime to the game as many ways as possible. Since MK freaks out every time you unmask him, I wanted him to act the same way in the fic. Of course, MK in the game doesn't bare scars. So in order for this to make sense, I had MK's scars be much less severe than he imagined. In the end, this actually helped me more because it showed how deep his internal scars were. For the last year I have also studied psychology (among other things) and have been trying to use it in my writings in order to give the characters more dimensions of their respective personalities. I hope you liked it, and that it succeeded to convey the emotion I was hoping to get across._


	10. Chapter 10

Shades of Grey - Chapter 10

"Finally… you have come…"

Meta-Knight stood in the darkness before Kirby and Tiff. The old veteran's eyes glowed brightly with determination, his sword illuminating in accordance. Thousands of years of war have come down to this moment.

This is the moment that decided everything.

This is the moment that could end the war!

The mere thought sent chills through the old knight. Yet he could not dispel the dreadful thoughts that coursed through his mind. 

__

What if we failed?

The war would continue. The monsters would rule. There would be more lost souls, like Meta-Knight, seeking redemption for their mere existence in the bloodbath of war. The old knight shook his head in resolution. He could not let that happen. Even if this wretched place were to be his tomb - it would be Nightmare's tomb as well!

The enormous hellion's presence was made known by the shifting of its massive wings. Tiff stifled a whimper and stepped closer to Meta-Knight. Kirby's eyes narrowed. Despite his youth the little creature knew…

Knew that this could be the end.

"So long…this war has been…" The deep, raspy voice was so soft, like the whisper of the wind. "…Why do you continue to fight…last of the star warriors…?" Crimson eyes landed on the young Kirby, who stood strong. "Why do you so eagerly throw your life away…?"

"If we just stood back and let you take over, there would no longer be a life worth living!" Tiff yelled, stepping forward.

The persimmon eyes moved to the girl, as if just noticing her. Tiff's breath caught in her throat as she looked into the demon's eyes. Within the crimson void was nothing but a calm hatred. "Would life be so bad? At least you would know your Fate. You would no longer be victim to false Hope."

"Hope is what keeps us going," Meta-Knight said sternly. "Without hope there is nothing."

"With hope comes disappointment and despair. You should know better than anyone, Meta-Knight."

"Enough talk…" the old knight spoke softly, his words barely audible. His eyes brightened, a slight reddish tinge to them. "Now everything comes to an end!" With that said, Meta-Knight charged forward, Kirby followed in suit. Tiff stepped back, her eyes widen with apprehension.

Nightmare only laughed as both star warriors lunged right through him, as if he were nothing more than a ghost. Meta-Knight landed heavily a few feet away. Kirby stumbled forward, barely able to catch himself. The sadistic glee evident in that horrible sound sent a tremor down Tiff's spine. "You think you can defeat me?! I thought you knew better, Meta-Knight! If it was that simple the war would already be over! I have transcended the boundaries of mere mortals, and cannot be destroyed by a mere sword!"

"Maybe not! But I have what can defeat you!" A young voice suddenly erupted behind the two star warriors caused them to turn around. Standing only a dozen feet away was Joe, behind him were Lololo and Sword. In the young fighter's hands he held the star rod!

Meta-Knight's eyes brightened in surprise, "The star rod?! But I thought it had been destroyed!"

Kirby smiled brightly at Joe's appearance.

Nightmare's eyes widened in horror at the sight of the star rod. "You traitorous wretch! How did you get it?!"

Joe smiled mischievously, "The legacy was true, Meta-Knight. Nightmare couldn't destroy the star rod, so he hid it." His grin widened. "It's over, Nightmare!"

Suddenly, the hellion's lips pulled back into a smile, revealing sharp, yellowed teeth. Nightmare arched his head back and let out a laugh that both surprised and frightened the righteous group.

"You think that the star rod alone can defeat me? None of you are capable of harvesting its true power!" the hellion hissed. "Even if you do possess the star rod it will not save you!" Before anyone had the chance to react, the monster unleashed a wave of energy at Joe. The young fighter raised his arms and stood strong even when the powerful waves threatened to send him hurling towards oblivion.

"Joe!" Sword cried as he rushed forward. Nightmare's eyes flashed as an inferno gathered under the young knight's feet and erupted around him.

"Sword!!" Meta-Knight cried. Kirby stepped back, whimpering. The raging firestorm launched Sword into the air and sent him crashing into the wall. Joe's strength began to wane as the energy waves overpowered him. The young fighter flew back and too hit the cold, damp wall interior of the cave, dropping the star rod in the process. Using the wall as a temporary support, Joe pulled himself onto his feet. Sword, however, remained motionless where he laid.

Lololo floated back a few feet, terror freezing him in place.

"Sword!" Tiff ran to their side. "Lolo, come on, I need your help here!" Tiff ordered, her voice breaking the paralysis that gripped the little creature. Tiff pulled out what little bandages she managed to keep with her. She then turned and handed some to him. Afterwards the two tenderly began bandaging his multiple wounds.

Meta-Knight made a lunge for the star rod, but a wave of energy forced him to swerve out of the way. Joe charged forward and began unleashing a barrage of vulcan jabs. Nightmare's eyes flashed as he blocked the attack with an energy shield and shot a stream of fire between Meta-Knight and the star rod. The searing heat forced the old soldier to jump back, using his wings to propel him backwards. Nightmare then whirled around and sent a bolt of electricity at the young fighter, who strafed aside and sent another line of vulcan jabs. 

As Tiff and Lololo continued bandaging Sword's wounds, the girl watched the battle unfold out of the corner of her eye. She could only hope that Joe and Meta-Knight's combined strength would outlast Nightmare's…

Lalala silently floating behind Bugsy as he walked through the hallways. Whenever he passed a room, his small follower would quickly peer inside to see if there was anything suspicious. She wasn't really sure what to look for, as she had never been given a description of the device. Suddenly, upon glancing into another room, Lalala noticed a huge cubic device on a large table. The little puffball flew into the room and looked it over.

This had to be it!

This had to be the device!

Excitement coursed through her, suddenly replaced by confusion. How was she going to destroy it? She wasn't overly strong to begin with. If she pulled out a few wires, it would stop it. On the other hand damage like that could easily be repaired. Lalala wanted to make sure that she destroyed it for good!

A loud roar startled the little creature from her thoughts. She turned to see Bugsy standing before her, holding two large swords in its massive grip.

With a shriek, Lalala flew behind the device. Bugsy leapt over it, and stabbed his sword at her. Terror threatened to paralyze her, as she barely strafed aside in time. She flew for the door, but the larger monster beat her to it. A cry escaped her as Lalala hid under the table that the device sat upon.

How she wished Lololo was there! He was no stronger, no faster, no smarter than she was. Nonetheless she felt safe with him. They had always faced everything together, but now she felt so very alone. Alone with a big, nasty monster.

A loud crash resounded and the table fell on top of her. With a whimper of pain she felt crushed under the large structure. Looking up with fading eyes upon her advancing adversary, tears blurred Lalala's vision. She thought about her brother, how much she missed him, how much she hoped that he would make it through the war. She hoped…

Hoped that he wouldn't be angry with her for failing.

The beetle's glowing eyes flickered as his strength suddenly began to wane. Suddenly dropping his weapons with a large bang, the creature faded away into nonexistence.

For a moment, Lalala couldn't understand what had just transpired. She tried to shift position and painfully managed to look above her. Bugsy had used the device and table to crush her, and in the process the device had been damaged and temporarily rendered offline.

Lalala felt a small flicker of excitement. The device was offline! She had succeeded! Now everything was going to be alright…wasn't it?

The little creature could no longer move at all under the crushing debris. Each breath became more and more of a struggle. Chills coursed through her as she fought unconsciousness.

She didn't want to die! 

She wanted to see a world without war!

She wanted to grow up!

She wanted to see Lololo again!

_She wanted to live!_

Lalala closed her eyes tightly. _It wasn't fair!! _How she wished her twin was there. Somehow, someway she felt that if he was there he would make everything alright. That by some mysterious miracle he would be able to save her. They had always been together, done everything together. No matter what the problem was the duo always found a way around it. Despite the war, and the inevitability of death, in the back of her mind Lalala always presumed Lololo and herself to be invincible. She felt that nothing could touch them as long as they were together.

But they weren't together now, and everything began to fade to black… "Lolo…."

Lololo's eyes widened as the bandages fell from numbed fingers. The gauze slowly and soundlessly fell onto the damp, tainted soil. Mere seconds had passed and yet Lololo relived an eternity.

An eternity of fun, and freedom

An eternity of love, and laughter.

An eternity of companionship…

…and in his mind's eye he could see the end of eternity as the sixth sense that always linked him to his twin was extinguished.

_This is it_, Tuff thought as Wolfwrath and the other monsters surrounded him and Blade. _We're dead._

His mind screamed for him to run away, but his body wouldn't comply. He could only lay where he had previously landed as paralysis held him in its massive grip. Blade had scrambled onto his feet and held his sword aloft, but he knew it was hopeless. There was no way he and the boy could hope to defeat so many monsters. Suddenly, the monsters began to roar as their bodies started…evaporating? Within a few seconds, Tuff and Blade were alone.

"What…what happened?" Tuff slowly pushed himself into a sitting position.

"She…she did it!" Blade exclaimed, sheathing his sword. "Lalala must have destroyed the device!" Tuff grinned broadly as he jumped onto his feet.

"She did it!" the boy cheered. "Now we can get out of here!"

Blade nodded, "Lets go find her and get out of here!"

"Lolo, what is it?!" Tiff cried as the azure creature suddenly froze in catatonia, the bandages dropping from his hands. Looking into the deadened eyes of her friend, realization struck her like a physical blow, "Oh no…NO!" The lack of response confirmed her assertion.

Upon hearing the girl's cries, Kirby turned to look at her.

"What….what's wrong, Tiff?" Sword questioned, as consciousness had finally returned to him.

"It's Lalala…" Tiff whispered. She closed her eyes tightly to push back tears that threatened to come. "She…she's…"

"Lalala…?" Kirby murmured, his eyes widening. "No…no no no no…!"

A large crash broke Kirby from his mantra. The young star warrior turned to see Joe sprawled out on the ground a few feet away. Tiff shook her head vigorously.

As much as she wanted to sink into the ground and disappear

As much as she wanted to fade away

Away from the pain

Away from war and the inevitable death that comes along with it

It wouldn't bring Lalala back.

If she gave in to despair and allowed Nightmare to win…

…Lalala's death would have been in vain.

With that in consideration, Tiff willed herself to focus. She could only hope that Lololo could find it somewhere within himself to do the same.

Before Nightmare could unleash another attack, Meta-Knight rushed to the star rod. Snatching it he held the rod before him, calling upon its power…but to his horror nothing would come. He concentrated all of his energy into the star rod…yet still he received no response. The hellion's lips drew back into a sinister grin.

"Has your own righteousness blinded you so much that you've forgotten your own essence?!" Nightmare hissed. "Or did you simply forget the specifics of the legend? Only a star warrior can wield that star rod, and you are no star warrior!" His smile only widened as Meta-Knight's eyes flickered with anger. The others could only stared at him with confusion. "What? You mean you never told them…?" The deep, grating voice dripped with sarcasm, "You never told them that you were never a star warrior? That you were nothing more than a monster designed to _emulate_ star warriors! No matter how much you imitate, you will never _truly_ be one!"

Kirby's eyes widened as he glanced over to his elder.

Meta-Knight fingers tightened around the star rod as a gasp resounded behind him.

"That's not true!" Joe cried. 

"Stop talking lies!" Sword growled as he pushed himself onto his feet, angered that the creature would make such a terrible allegation. Lololo floated silently, his eyes still wide in remembrance. Tiff looked over at the accuser.

Meta-Knight closed his eyes tightly.

It had been so long ago, yet he still remembered…

For so long he had fought as a star warrior.

Lived as a star warrior.

Breathed as a star warrior.

Faced death as a star warrior.

Yet the star rod remained dead in his hand.

"Oh, but it's true! During the first battles against the star warriors, they proved to be a huge threat," Nightmare began, relishing in the apparent torture he was bestowing on the old knight. "So I decided to create a monster that could emulate them. An 'evil' star warrior, if you want to think of it that way. He was to sneak into their ranks and assassinate them, one by one."

Tiff's eyes widened, and she looked over to Meta-Knight. The old soldier's eyes were clenched shut, his wings trembling.

"But I didn't," Meta-Knight spoke softly. "I never assassinated any of them…with them…I saw you for what you were. I saw the monster you were, the monster I was. I stayed with them, became one of them…"

"You were never one of them!" Nightmare cried. "That star rod proves it! You can use it no more than I can! You are no less a monster than I am!" The monster bared its teeth in a ferocious grin. His voice softened. "Yet despite your pathetic attempts at redemption, you've served me better you ever had. For it was your own poor leadership that led your 'comrades' to their inevitable slaughter!"

"SILENCE!" Meta-Knight's eyes flashed red.

Tiff was surprised, yet confused by that statement. If Meta-Knight was such a horrible leader, then he would never had been revered so much, and Sword and Blade wouldn't have such loyalties to him. It didn't make any sense…

_"…why …how could people view me as some kind of hero?"_

_"If I was as great a hero as everyone fancied I would be able to fight the monsters on my own. I would be able to fight against this serum without anyone's help… I would…I don't know, be stronger…"_

Suddenly she realized. Nightmare apparently had the ability to read minds. Meta-Knight was a compassionate, competent and capable leader, but in his own eyes he was a gross failure. He was supposedly the only star warrior left, other than Kirby. Even with the knowledge that they were heavily outnumbered, the old veteran blamed himself and solely bared the burden of their deaths. In his mind, they had died under his lead, he had failed. What's worse, he was the only one who knew.

Knew that the star warrior that the underlings had revered and trusted so was not even a star warrior to begin with.

He was a monster.

A monster that had been assigned to spy and assassinate.

Despite this newfound information, Tiff didn't care any less for the old knight.

If anything, her sentiments grew.

Meta-Knight had tried so hard to be a star warrior.

He fought alongside them, took care of them, took responsibility for them.

He led them as best as he could - against the very creatures that were his true brethren. When they died under his leadership, he carried the weight of responsibility. It was a burden he had carried for the rest of his life.

And Nightmare was exploiting that vulnerability.

"_I am a star warrior!_" Meta-Knight roared. His body shook with barely contained rage, "and I will prove it!" He sprung into the air and dived down at his adversary. His vision was tinted in a haze of red, as rage guided his actions.

"Meta-Knight!" Tiff cried, "No! That's what he wants you to do!"

"Stop!" Joe yelled. Their cries fell to deaf ears. All Meta-Knight could hear were the phantom screams of his former comrades as they fell in droves all around him.

He had been created to assassinate them.

Yet in his valiant efforts to be a star warrior he had done just that.

Tears blurred his vision as he phased right through his adversary. Yet that would not deter him. Grappling onto the wall, Meta-Knight sprang forward and once again, his wings near his side for extra speed. This time Nightmare lunged forward, his claw reaching for the star rod! Before either could connect, Sword charged forward and intercepted his leader from the air. The two landed heavily on the ground, Sword on top of Meta-Knight.

"Don't listen to him, milord!" Sword cried, trying to pin his elder's arms down. Meta-Knight flailed his wings, trying to get away, but his wings could not support the combined weight of himself and his subordinate. "Blade and I weren't there during most of the war, but one thing we do know is that you're a great leader! You cared for us when no one else did! You showed Blade and me the right path the follow! I know that if there was anything you could have done to save them, then they would be here today!"

Meta-Knight's struggles waned as his rage transposed to surprise.

Sword now knew what Meta-Knight truly was. 

Knew what he was created to be.

Yet he was still here.

"It doesn't matter what you were born to be…" Sword murmured, seeing the confusion in his leader's golden eyes. "It's what you do that determines what you are! You'll always be a star warrior to me."

"Sword…"

Nightmare growled in anger as Meta-Knight's grip on the star rod loosened. He couldn't allow the star rod to reach Kirby. Despite his youth, Kirby was still a star warrior and a potential force to be reckoned with. The massive demon raised his hands, his cape opening slightly to reveal what looked like a tornado. Lacking actual substance, the monster better represented a phantom than an entity. Nightmare was just that - a living incubus! Kirby's eyes widened in horror. Within the monster's hands the storms gathered. Finally, with a screech of laughter, he unleashed on Kirby the massive storms in a colossal, concentrated beam.

The emission was so bright Tiff had to shield her eyes. Kirby screamed in fear and averted his gaze. Despite the extreme speed of the beams, to Meta-Knight everything came in slow motion. Throwing Sword off of him, the old veteran sprang onto his feet and dashed forward.

Meta-Knight had failed the star warriors.

He had allowed them to die at the hands of the monsters.

He may not have been one by birth, but he felt closer to the star warriors than he ever had with the monsters. Yet he had failed them.

He would not let the same thing happen to Kirby.

Kirby was the last of the star warriors.

The last one who could wield the star rod.

Without Kirby, all hope would be lost.

Without hope, there is nothing.

A huge crack resounded as Meta-Knight's mask shattered under the pressure, the broken pieces flying in different directions. The old veteran flew back past Kirby and tumbled a few feet on the dirt floor. A series of sickening thuds resounded as he finally skidded to a stop and laid motionless on the grungy dirt floor…

Tuff and Blade walked through the hallways, relieved to find them empty.

"Wow, NME must have been desperate. With that device destroyed there's no monsters left…" Tuff pointed out.

"Maybe the rest of them are still out chasing Meta-Knight and Kirby…?" Blade wondered aloud. Tuff shrugged and glanced into another room. A sudden cry escaped him. The young knight whirled around, his hand straying to the hilt of his weapon, "What is it?!"

"Lalala!" Tuff cried, racing into the room. Blade rushed in behind him. The room that the two currently occupied had been demolished. In the center, a broken table resided. On the table sat, what the duo figured, was the device. It had a large crack across the top. Pinned under the combined weight of the table and device was Lalala.

With a hard shove, Tuff tried to push the device off the table. However the device was much heavier than the boy had anticipated.

"I'll push the table up, you grab her," Blade ordered. Tuff nodded in reply, pushing back tears that threatened to come.

_You can't be dead! Not when we're this close!_

The young subordinate crouched down and pressed his back against the table, his fingers curling underneath. With a grunt he stood up, pulling the table and device up with him. Tuff knelt down, reached forward and gingerly pulled the little pink creature from the rubble. Standing up, the boy cradled Lalala, trying to cause as little excess damage as possible.

Blade dropped the table, which hit the floor with a crash. Afterwards he tenderly felt Lalala for a pulse. Tuff swallowed a lump in his throat. She felt so cold…wasn't moving at all, "Blade! Is she alright?! Tell me she's alright!"

"I…I'm sorry Tuff…" Blade whispered.

"No! NO!" Tuff cried, hugging the lifeless cadaver of his friend close and sinking to a sitting position. "We won, Lalala, we won! You destroyed the device! We won! It's over! We're…we're heroes, Lala! We're supposed to… ride off…in… into the sunset! We… can finally…finally live in peace….! ..Lala…no..."

"Medanigh!" Kirby mewled.

"Meta-Knight!" Tiff cried as she raced to the fallen knight's side.

"NO!" Sword cried. The young soldier quickly climbed onto his feet and rushed to Tiff and Meta-Knight. 

The fallen knight was laying limply on his side. Tiff gently turned him onto his back. The fine bones in his wings were broken in several places, and his battered body was covered in lacerations.

"Medanigh…!" Kirby ran to Tiff's side. He then gently nudged his elder, whimpering. "Medanigh… Medanigh!" There was no response.

Nightmare watched the exchange with a mixture of anger and surprise. The old veteran had thrown himself into the line of fire to save Kirby without a second thought. For the first time, he truly realized what it was that made Meta-Knight different than the other monsters he had created.

Meta-Knight had a soul.

"The injury is critical…" Sword concluded after a quick examination. "But he should be alright…"

The revelation only fueled the hellion's rage. Meta-Knight was created to serve him faithfully, as were all of the other monsters. Yet not only did the veteran have a free will, he chose to exercise it against him. With his strength and intellect he could have ruled alongside Nightmare, but instead he chose a life of pain and war. 

Kirby slowly turned to look at the monster that had ravaged so many lives, a fire of determination in his young eyes. Suddenly he ran to the star rod that Meta-Knight had previously dropped. As Kirby picked it up, the star rod came to life! Its bright illumination bathed the room in light.

Nightmare pulled his lips back into a hideous scowl as Kirby turned to face him. "You dare to challenge me!? Child, you have barely begun to live and already you choose to die?!"

"No more Nightmare," Kirby said, his small voice calm and stern. "No more war."

"Kirby…" Tiff whispered. Lololo watched silently as he continued bandaging the wounded knight. 

Nightmare raised his arms up and gathered energy between his hands. Kirby closed his eyes, concentrating his energy.

Like a sword beam, Kirby could use the star rod to unleash his own spiritual energy in a condensed beam. Finally, the two adversaries simultaneously released their blasts of energy. The two beams collided between them and held steady as both fought for control. The young star warrior's face tightened to a grimace as his beam began to weaken under the strain. Tiff bit her lip, desperately hoping that Kirby's spirit could outlast Nightmare's.

"We've got to do something!" Joe cried, and with that said he raced to Kirby's side and hurled a series of vulcan jabs into Nightmare's ray. The hellion's eyes flashed with rage and a rising column of electricity suddenly shocked the fighter. Joe cried out with pain, but it only helped to fuel his determination. With a roar, he relentlessly unleashed a line of vulcan jabs into the beam. Finally Kirby and Nightmare's energies were beginning to even out, but no one knew how long it would last

"K...Kirby…." Meta-Knight wheezed, drawing Tiff and Sword's attention. He slowly tried to get up, but Tiff gently tightened her hold.

"Try not to move too much," Tiff said soothingly.

"Kirby…" the weakened veteran looked over to see Kirby straining under the attack. "I've…got to…help him…"

"Please Lord Meta-Knight!" Sword pleaded as the old knight struggled against Tiff's hold. "Try to lie still!"

"If…Kirby fails…all is …lost," Meta-Knight whispered. "I…can't …let that happen..!" With that said, he pushed himself away from Tiff and shakily climbed onto his feet.

The little star warrior's eyes closed tightly. Even with Joe's help, Kirby's power was rapidly dwindling under the relentless onslaught. Suddenly, he felt a familiar presence behind him. Large, thick arms wrapped around the frightened little star warrior and firmly grasp the star rod. Kirby's eyes opened and he glanced behind him to see the gentle golden eyes of his mentor.

"Focus…Kirby…" Meta-Knight whispered. "I will…give you my strength…you can do it…"

Kirby looked into the brightly glowing eyes of his father figure, finding within the strength to continue. He turned his young gaze to the hellion that stood before him. The young star warrior called upon all of the strength he had. Meta-Knight channeled his energy through Kirby, and into the star rod. Combined with Joe's multitude of vulcan jabs, the beam cut through Nightmare's like a hot knife through butter.

"No! This…this can't be!" Nightmare cried, his crimson eyes widening in rage. "You're not even a star warrior! How are you harvesting the power of the star rod?!" The demon's energy was quickly dissipating under the pressure of the combined powers of Joe, Meta-Knight and Kirby. "NOOOOO!!" As the column of energy engulfed him, tremors shook the entire structure in which they stood. With a loud, horrific shriek the hellion evaporated into the column.

Afterwards the beam of energy faded away. Joe fell back as exhaustion overtook him. Meta-Knight slowly let go of Kirby and collapsed.

"Meta-Knight!!" Sword cried as he rushed to his elder's side.

"I'm… alright…" the old veteran said softly, his partially opened eyes glowing dimly. "Just… tired…"

Tiff could only stare at the empty space that Nightmare had previously occupied as realization dawned on her. "The…the…the war is over…"

Lololo had watched the entire climatic battle in silence. 

Sword too was stunned by the revelation. He abruptly jumped into the air, "It's over! The war is over!" The young soldier threw his arms around the elder soldier. "We did it, Meta-Knight! We did it!"

A slight smile crossed the old knight's lips, his eyes illuminating warmly. "It's over…It's finally over…"

Aftermath:

The clouds parted over Cappytown as the rugged group treaded home. Upon their return they received a hero's welcome and met up with Blade and Tuff. From them the group received the disheartening news of Lalala's death. Yet in spite of the tragedy, the cappies had thrown a huge party to celebrate the end of the war and the heroes that fought in it.

During the party Meta-Knight snuck out. He wanted to get away from the lights and sounds of the festivities and just to be alone. After a while of wandering he found himself standing before the empty castle of their former king. The old knight jumped into the air and gracefully glided onto the rooftop. There he could see the setting sun illuminating the horizon.

The old knight closed his eyes.

Finally, the war was over.

Meta-Knight had never expected to see the end of the war. The thought had always brought the veteran a strange sense of comfort. At least he knew that he would die knowing his purpose.

But as he looked over the glowing horizon a sickening feeling of insignificance washed over him. The war was over, what life was left for him now?

"Hey…" the soft voice broke him from his train of thought. "What are you doing here…?" He turned around to see Tiff standing before him. The old soldier wasn't sure how she had gotten there, but whether or not she followed him didn't matter. He found himself appreciating her company.

"Reflecting…" He glanced back out over the horizon, "I never imagined that I was going to live through this war. But now that I have, what purpose is left for me? The world no longer has need for knights…"

Tiff smiled slightly, "That's the beauty of it, Meta-Knight… you don't have to be a knight anymore… You've fought so hard, for so long… now you are no longer a slave to Purpose. Now you can live your life however you want to!"

Meta-Knight turned to regard Tiff. She was right. The more he thought about it, the more he truly realized how much freedom he had been granted. Already he knew what he wanted to do. He would adopt Kirby. There were so many things he wanted to teach the young star warrior, so many things to show him. The old knight looked back at her, his eyes brightening considerably with the revelation.

Tiff's smile broadened at Meta-Knight's reaction. She reached her hand out to him, "Come, lets go back to the party! Lets go and celebrate our newfound freedom!"

For as long as the veteran could remember, he had never allowed himself to loosen up. In case there was an attack, he always had to make sure that he was constantly ready. But now the war was over, there was nothing that he needed to prepare himself for. With that realization in mind, he took her hand…

A cemetery was constructed to honor the fallen heroes of the war. There the bodies of Lalala, Escargoon and King Dedede were buried. Before Lalala's grave stood her twin, with Tuff a few meters behind. In the small creature's hands was a single rose, which he silently placed just before the tombstone. Tuff watched the gesture with a tinge of sadness. Lololo had failed to overcome the trauma of his sister's death, and the event left him permanently grounded. Many times their parents had taken him to the physician to find a diagnosis for his unexplainable malady. When all of the tests came out negative, the doctors eventually came to the conclusion that he had Conversion Disorder*.

"Are you ready to go…?" Tuff asked tenderly. Lololo stood in silence for a moment before finally nodding. Tuff gingerly picked up the small creature and held him on his shoulder. Casting one last glance at the tombstones, he turned his back and walked away. At that moment he vowed.

He would never forget them, their lives, and their sacrifices

But he was going to let them go

Move on with his life

And help Lololo do the same.

Joe decided to start his own acting school in a nearby town. Many creatures traveled from all over Dreamland to enroll in his school. The young fighter became very popular and helped to educate some of the greatest actors Dreamland had ever known…

The leader of Dagger's clan had died during the great battle. Due to his immense skill and heart, Dagger had been selected as the new leader of his clan. With the war over, there was no longer a need for ninjas. With that in mind, Dagger led his clan to towns that had been ravaged from the onslaught and helped the people to rebuild their homes and their lives…

After the celebrations were over, the cappies collectively realized that they needed a new king. Since Dedede had no known brethren, and Meta-Knight was the oldest and most competent, he was immediately nominated as the new King.

Upon his nomination, Meta-Knight's first announcement was that there was no longer going to be a monarchy. From that day forward they were going to be a democracy. The cappies were extremely happy with his statement, for that meant that never again would someone be granted rulership over them by birthright alone. However that wasn't the only announcement the old soldier had to give. His second, and final announcement, was that he was going to retire from politics, war, and everything related. The cappies were initially surprised, but eventually understood and even supported his decision.

To celebrate their newfound democracy, the cappies demolished the castle of King Dedede. Afterwards they expanded the town to cover the area that the castle used to occupy.

Within the expanding town, Meta-Knight and his two disciples built a large but modest home. Once their new home was complete, Chef Kawasaki hired the trio as his assistants. It hardly granted them the prestige of their former employment, but what it did grant them was much more important. After spending so much of their lives in violence, misery and pain, this gave them a peace, freedom and security beyond what they had ever wished. Meta-Knight adopted Kirby, finally fulfilling the star warrior his one internal wish - the wish for the love and belonging of a parent.

The war was finally over. While many people great and small lost their lives in the bloodshed, the war was only a rock thrown into the currents of time. The rock may cause ripples, but eventually the ripples cease, and ultimately the rock is carried away and life goes on…

The End.

__

* Conversion Disorder is when you have a physical symptoms with no actual cause. It is caused by a traumatic experience and is most often characterized as a loss of a bodily function (such as blindness or, in Lololo's case, the loss of his ability to fly)

Sequel - I have been asked before if I planned to write a sequel. My answer right now is maybe. I do have an idea for a sequel, however, I'm not sure whether or not to make it a sequel or a stand alone fic (It works better as a sequel, however I worry about it not living up to the first story. I will not write a sequel just for the sake of writing a sequel. I want to make sure the sequel can live up to the name of the first one) Eventually I may right a first chapter to the 'sequel' as a test and allow you to decide. However I want to work on it more and make sure that the sequel will work before I start writing.

Author's Notes: Wow, I can't believe it's over. I feel as if I had been writing this story forever. I apologize for taking so long with this chapter, but due to its extreme importance, I wanted to make sure everything comes together at the right times. I wanted to make sure that everything that needs to be said is said at the right place, at the right time and in the right way. Finally, I wanted to make sure the end was fulfilling, answered all questions and tied all loose ends. Many, many times I wrote and re-wrote certain scenes, ultimately adding some and deleting others. I want to take this time to thank you all for taking the time to read and review my story. Your opinions all meant a great deal to me, and I was able to use the reviews to monitor each chapter and make sure there wasn't anything I was leaving out, or a misspelling of character names. I was also able to make sure that all of the scenes were delivered smoothly and the angst wasn't cheesy or overkill. Thank you all very much, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and the entire story, as much as I enjoyed writing it.

NeoDragon


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